DENVER — Data from the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) shows a 75% increase in construction zone crashes this year compared to last. Colorado lawmakers are now calling on the federal government to hold CDOT accountable for those deaths.
Representatives Greg Lopez, Doug Lamborn and Lauren Boebert penned a letter to U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Secretary Pete Buttigieg asking that the agency detail how investigations into state departments of transportation are conducted and what oversight USDOT has. Congressman Jodey Arrington of Texas and Congressman Sam Graves of Missouri co-signed the letter.
The lawmakers allege that contractors working with CDOT have raised "numerous concerns... including a disregard for state and federal safety guidelines."
"They are basically saying we must do this in order to protect the safety of the drivers on the highways. And CDOT is saying, 'No, I don't think we need to go to that level,'" said Rep. Lopez, who spearheaded the effort.
The letter lists four crashes that left 11 people dead over three months:
- June 6: Two women who were stopped by flaggers in a construction zone on Highway 550 in Montrose County were killed after being rear-ended by a speeding vehicle.
- August 15: A newlywed couple and the bride's mother were killed in a crash involving a semi-truck on Interstate 70 in Wheat Ridge. The Wheat Ridge Police Department determined that a crime was not committed. CDOT implemented safety changes in that construction zone following the crash.
- September 4: Two CDOT maintenance workers and a passenger were killed in a crash on US 6 in Mesa County.
- September 18: Three people were killed on I-70 between Bethune and Burlington when a semi-truck collided with a van after hitting cones and a concrete barrier while merging.
We asked Lopez why he believes CDOT is responsible for the crashes mentioned in the letter.
"If you have a safety plan that is supposed to meet all the guidelines, supposed to meet all of the criteria, why is it that our fatalities in construction zones are going up?" said Lopez.
According to CDOT data, there were 11 construction zone-related fatalities in 2021 and 10 in 2022. The state saw 16 construction zone-related deaths in 2023.
So far this year, there have been 28 construction zone-related deaths in Colorado — a 75% increase compared to last year, with six weeks left in the year. Another 38 people have been injured in such crashes.
CDOT determined that careless driving contributed to nearly a quarter of construction zone crashes that involved fatalities or serious injuries.
"[Coloradans] want to feel that they can drive on the highway safely. That when they come across a construction site, they're not going to be in fear of being rear-ended. They're not going to be in fear of having a head-on collision because of how the realignment of the road has been engineered, which causes a safety hazard," said Lopez.
In a statement, CDOT said it "shares the grave concern about the pattern we have seen in work zones in the past couple of years."
Full statement:
"CDOT shares the grave concern about the pattern we have seen in work zones in the past couple of years -- which unfortunately but not surprisingly correlates to a period of record construction when there were more work zones statewide, particularly along interstates, along with more drivers moving through them. Workzones are inherently situated in areas surrounded by live traffic and present safety challenges that demand the ongoing focus and attention of government and industry alike.
Regarding I-70 and Ward, the construction plans were designed in accordance with federal and state guidelines by a consultant hired by CDOT, sealed by the Engineer of Record, and approved by CDOT. CDOT’s after-action review confirmed that the work zone was implemented in accordance with the approved construction plans. CDOT took several further actions, starting with further lowering the speed limit in the area. The signage that was in place prior to the incident was supplemented with flashing lights and an overhead variable message board to draw greater attention to the work zone ahead. And after the project team noted that speeding was pervasive in the area as they performed driving reviews of the work zone, speed feedback signs were also installed, and CDOT partnered with local and state law enforcement to enforce speed limits.
CDOT pays particular attention to and proactively highlights the safety issues in construction zones because those areas are different than a normal roadway configuration by their very nature. It means that the problematic driving behaviors that we normally call out, such as speeding, impaired driving, and distracted driving can cause grave consequences above and beyond what they do along other stretches of roadway."
Lawmakers asked Buttigieg to respond to their request by Nov. 22.
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