CHARLESTON, WV – On the first day of a targeted speed enforcement operation in the work zone on Interstate 64 between 29th Street and the Huntington Mall on Wednesday, March 15, 2023, police stopped over 120 vehicles exceeding the posted 55 mph speed limit or otherwise disobeying traffic laws.

Additionally, the WVDOH is increasing signs and radar speed detectors in work zones to remind drivers to slow down, poring over work zone crash data for information to help make our work zones safer, investing in new equipment and technology to place in work zones, and reaching out to the public to get the message out to slow down and pay attention while traveling through road work areas.

At Gov. Jim Justice’s direction, and in partnership with public safety officials and police organizations throughout the Mountain State, the West Virginia Division of Highways (WVDOH) is cracking down on drivers speeding through work zones. West Virginia State Police, the Cabell County Sheriff’s Department, and police departments from Huntington, Barboursville and Milton took part in a targeted speed enforcement operation Wednesday morning on I-64 between Huntington and the Huntington Mall, where the posted speed limit is 55 mph.

One vehicle traveling through the work zone was clocked at 81 mph, 26 mph over the posted speed limit.

“Work zone safety is about keeping every worker, every driver, and every passenger safe in every work zone,” said Randy Damron, Work Zone Safety spokesperson for WVDOT. “We each play a role in getting everyone home safe at the end of the day.”

In 2022, there were 800 crashes in West Virginia work zones, killing eight people and injuring 276. All crashes were avoidable.

West Virginia Transportation Secretary Jimmy Wriston, P.E., has vowed to do whatever it takes to lower the number of work zone deaths in West Virginia to zero.

“It’s easy to get in a hurry or become distracted in a work zone,” said Damron. “But we need every driver to work with us and remain alert each time they get behind the wheel.”