Driving Safety

Construction sites are busy and full of potential dangers. One of these dangers is struck-by incidents. In 2013, more than 17,100 construction workers were injured – and 84 workers died – in struck-by incidents, according to the 2016 edition of the chartbook “Injury Facts,” produced by the National Safety Council.

Are you worried about your employees driving distracted or using their cell phone behind the wheel?

Although you can’t control the actions of other drivers, you can be a defensive driver.

Many employees begin and end their workday in parking lots, but they may overlook the potential dangers of the area.

About 100 people die every day on roadways due to preventable motor vehicle crashes.

Backing vehicles and equipment are a serious occupational hazard. The Bureau of Labor Statistics states that, of the 443 struck-by fatalities at road construction sites between 2003 and 2010, 143 cases involved a vehicle or mobile equipment backing up.

Every year, motor vehicle crashes cost employers $60 billion in medical care, legal expenses, property damage and lost productivity, according to a white paper from OSHA, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety.

Cell phone use has become part of the culture we live in, but no phone call or text is worth a life.

From 2005 to 2010, dump trucks, semi-trailers, trucks, forklifts, garbage trucks and pickup trucks were involved in nearly 200 workplace backover deaths, according to OSHA.

Black ice – which can be almost invisible – forms when the air temperature is warmer than pavement, which causes moisture to rapidly freeze and create a thin, transparent layer of ice on the roadway.