Summer traffic puts BC roadside workers at risk every day
How would you cope if vehicles drove within a few feet of your workstation?
It’s a daily peril for many BC residents. They’re roadside workers – people who do their jobs while traffic flows around them. Every shift they face the risk of being injured or killed. More vehicles on the road during the summer and around holiday weekends increases the risk.
“Working around traffic is dangerous,” says Trace Acres, spokesperson for the annual Cone Zone safety awareness campaign. “Cone Zones are there to protect and save lives.”
Tens of thousands of British Columbians work at the roadside in Cone Zones, which are most often associated with bright orange cones. (Reflectors and other signs can also be used.) Each zone has its own unique set of hazards associated with roads, traffic, vehicles, weather, and work activities.
“Driving too fast and not paying attention in a Cone Zone puts roadside workers at risk,” Acres says. “Orange cones are often the only thing separating their workspace from your vehicle.”
WorkSafeBC statistics show two roadside workers in the province were killed last year and 31 were injured seriously enough to miss work after being hit by a vehicle. Over the last decade, 12 roadside workers lost their lives and 221 missed time from work due to injury.
“It’s more than road construction and maintenance crews, and traffic control persons,” says Acres. “We’re also talking about landscapers, municipal workers, tow truck operators, utility workers, movers, and delivery van drivers. Also watch for flashing lights and slow down when you see emergency and enforcement personnel.”
The annual Cone Zone campaign aims to raise awareness about the safety risk, and reminds employers, workers, and drivers to each do their part to prevent deaths and injuries. They can find resources at ConeZoneBC.com.
Drivers approaching a Cone Zone need to:
- Slow down and avoid distractions like a phone. A distraction of even a few seconds can have life-changing consequences
- Pay attention to temporary road signs, traffic cones, and directions given by a traffic control person
- Comply with BC’s Slow Down, Move Over law, which requires drivers to slow down and move over to the left lane when safe to do so for any vehicle flashing a red, blue, or amber light. This includes tow trucks, utility vehicles, garbage trucks, and emergency response vehicles
Typical penalties for unsafe driving in a Cone Zone include a $368 fine for using a phone and at least $196 for speeding.
Employers and prime contractors who have employees in roadside work zones are required to:
- Do a risk assessment of the hazards
- Take steps to eliminate or reduce the risk
- Supervise, train, and equip workers to help keep them safe
Roadside workers also have legal safety responsibilities. They need to:
- Know how to identify hazards and assess risks
- Properly set up their work zones
- Follow safe work procedures, including set-up and take-down regulations
- Wear appropriate high-visibility clothing
- Report unsafe work conditions to their supervisor
In its 12th year, the Cone Zone campaign is a provincial initiative supported by the Work Zone Safety Alliance and managed by Road Safety at Work.
“Every roadside worker in BC deserves to make it home to their family at the end of their shift without injury,” says Acres.
Quotes from RCMP and roadside workers:
Sgt. Patrick Davies, BC Highway Patrol
“When approaching, and also when passing through, a Cone Zone, it is essential that you be vigilant for roadside workers, temporary signage, and emergency or service vehicles. This is a workplace, and those working there deserve our respect and attention. In a Cone Zone, operating your vehicle, and doing so safely, should be your only focus. Remember, a moment’s inattention on your part can have tragic results for a roadside worker!”
April Wolsynuk, lane technician with Go Traffic Management (works in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows)
“Don’t stop so close to me. If somebody hits you from behind you’ll hit me. Pay attention. It only takes seconds to get through our job sites.”
Patrick Lai, paramedic (works in Burnaby)
“Sometimes we’re standing in traffic in the middle of the night helping someone. If you see our lights, the cones or the flares, move over and slow down and give us the space we need.”
Michelle Bush, sign person, Mainroad Mid Island Contracting (works on Vancouver Island)
“It only takes a second for something to happen. You don’t have enough time to say anything except ‘look out.’ Please slow down. My family loves to see me each night.”
Lisa Stevenson, road crew operator, Mainroad Lower Mainland Contracting (works in Greater Vancouver)
“Every time we step out of the truck we could get injured. You have to have your head on a swivel. Slow down. Open your eyes. See the people that are on the road. We have families to go home to. “
About the Work Zone Safety Alliance
The Cone Zone campaign is a joint provincial initiative supported by organizations committed to improving the safety of roadside workers. Members are: Ambulance Paramedics of B.C., Automotive Retailers Association, BCAA, BC Construction Safety Alliance, BC Flagging Association, BC Municipal Safety Association, BC Road Builders and Heavy Construction Association, BC Road Safe, CoreCode Safety and Compliance, Government of BC, IBEW Local 258, Insurance Corporation of BC, K&K Consulting, Justice Institute of British Columbia, LiUNA Local 1611, Mainroad Group, RCMP, Road Safety At Work, SafetyDriven, TELUS, The Universal Group, Trans Mountain and WorkSafeBC.
About Road Safety at Work
Road Safety at Work is a WorkSafeBC-funded initiative managed by the Justice Institute of British Columbia aimed at eliminating work-related motor vehicle crashes, deaths, and injuries in BC. Road Safety at Work offers free online resources — including courses, workshops, webinars, and consulting services — to help organizations plan, implement, and monitor effective road safety programs. Visit RoadSafetyAtWork.ca.
Media contact:
Gord Woodward, Communications manager
Road Safety at Work
250-734-3652
gwoodward@roadsafetyatwork.ca