Cones and barriers on the road during a construction project. Image: Adobe Stock

The data, released by the construction and contractor trade group Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) and US-based software provider HCSS (Heavy Construction Systems Specialists), underscores growing urgency among contractors for tougher enforcement, smarter technology, and stronger laws to protect their workers.

The findings show a dangerous trend: roadwork zone crashes are rising, and highway contractors say they鈥檙e increasingly operating in fear.

During a 20 May webinar hosted by AGC, construction leaders and safety advocates called for new laws, tougher enforcement, and broader deployment of real-time warning technology.

鈥淓very day, tens-of-thousands of Americans work alongside our highways, often with little more between them and rushing traffic than an orange barrel,鈥� said Jeff Shoaf, AGC鈥檚 chief executive officer. 鈥淭hese workers are counting on the travelling public to slow down and pay attention but, too often, the public is letting them down.鈥�

A look at road construction zone crash data

Workers spread asphalt on a roadworks project. Image: Adobe Stock

Among the crashes that impacted 60% of contractors in the country, 71% said drivers or passengers were injured, while 30% reported injuries to workers.

Nearly one-in-four firms experienced a crash that killed a driver or passenger, compared to 13% that saw worker fatalities.

鈥淶ero deaths and serious injuries is the only acceptable outcome,鈥� said Steve McGough, president and CEO of HCSS. 鈥淲ork zone safety must continue to be a focus for our industry.鈥�

The webinar featured firsthand accounts of how dangerous those jobsites can be. Lane Fouts, CEO of FoutsCo Paving in Texas, US, recalled a nighttime crash in which one of his workers was struck by a drunk driver. A mindboggling wrinkle to the story: The same worker had saved a man from suicide just hours earlier.

The worker survived the ordeal and shared his story via recorded video during AGC鈥檚 highway safety webinar.

鈥淵ou always think about it,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t made me realise how dangerous this job actually is, and not to get complacent.鈥�

Jeff Gibson, president and CEO of engineering contractors Gibson & Associates and current president of AGC Texas, said it鈥檚 not just accidents that are rising, it鈥檚 the aggressiveness of drivers.

鈥淲e鈥檝e seen far more reports of the travelling public choosing to enter our work zones, just so they don鈥檛 have to sit in traffic,鈥� said Gibson. 鈥淲orkers are literally running for their safety.鈥�

Successes and barriers in improving road construction safety

A road construction team works at night with the Cat AP500 asphalt paver. Image: Caterpillar

Experts on the webinar said a concerted effort by local, state, and federal leadership is required to improve roadside safety for construction workers and motorists.

Texas recently passed a law requiring driver鈥檚 education programs to include work zone safety curriculum, a move Gibson and AGC Texas helped spearhead.

But efforts to enable speed enforcement cameras in work zones failed in Texas. Gibson said it鈥檚 not due to a lack of need, but updating 鈥� in his opinion 鈥� archaic privacy concerns tied to automated camera-based enforcement systems.

He added, 鈥淲e need to do a better job educating elected officials that this isn鈥檛 about surveillance 鈥� it鈥檚 about saving lives.鈥�

That scepticism has hindered broader tech adoption, despite examples of success. Michael Gallant, director at construction-specific software provider HaulHub, said his firm is working with four states (Delaware, Iowa, Nebraska, Louisiana) on a federally backed pilot program to use telematics data from machines on site to automatically notify turn-by-turn GPS apps and systems of active work zones.

鈥淐rews are operating just feet from traffic, and without a clear, real-time signal that work is happening now; drivers often don鈥檛 register that risk,鈥� said Gallant. 鈥淭his isn鈥檛 about tech for tech鈥檚 sake. It鈥檚 about making sure that when someone steps into a work zone, they鈥檙e not invisible.鈥�

Gallant said more than 1,300 machines are now connected, with millions of verified worker presence events pushed to drivers in real time. He added that initial results show the warnings are having a measurable effect on driver behaviour.

Information alone isn鈥檛 enough to improve highway construction safety

Contractors say education alone won鈥檛 fix the problem. Approximately 36% of firms surveyed said current penalties for work zone violations are insufficient, and 39% say enforcement is too lax. Two-thirds want stricter distracted driving laws, and 54% support automated enforcement systems and ticketing.

AGC鈥檚 Shoaf said the federal government needs to step in to unify crash data collection and require state action plans.

鈥淭he statistics on highway worker safety are being kept in separate buckets, underestimating the true complexity of the problem,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e need better data and stronger policy.鈥�

Ultimately, as Fouts put it, 鈥淚t鈥檚 a partnership between the travelling public and contractors.

鈥淲e want to go home safe, and we want to keep serving the public tomorrow and the next day. But we can鈥檛 do it alone.鈥�