National Work Zone Memorial coming to Vermont for National Work Zone Awareness Week event

The Foundation’s work zone memorial to be featured at work zone safety event

(Montpelier, VT) - As part of their National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW) activities, the New England Chapter of the American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA) is hosting the National Work Zone Memorial on April 3 in Montpelier.

NWZAW is an annual nationwide event that promotes awareness of safety in work zones. This year’s NWZAW will take place April 9-13, with a kickoff event in Chicago, Illinois.

The Foundation, a non-profit that supports the families of fallen roadway workers lost in work zone crashes, maintains the National Work Zone Memorial. The memorial – “Respect and Remembrance: Reflections of Life on the Road” – honors lives lost in work zones in the United States, listing the names of those lost to make the loss clear to individuals, drivers, and policy makers.

The memorial currently holds 1,400 names, and travels around the country to raise awareness of the real-life consequences of not putting safety first in work zones.

Hosted in conjunction with the New England ATSSA Chapter, the Associated General Contractors of Vermont (AGC/VT), and the Vermont Transportation Agency (VTRANS), the event, which is free and open to the public, is being hosted at the Capitol Plaza Hotel & Conference Center at 100 State Street. The event will kick off at 10 a.m. with a press conference in the Montpelier Room.

The current lineup of speakers for the press conference includes Vermont Governor Phil Scott, Vermont Secretary of Transportation Joe Flynn, Foundation President Tom Wood, and AGC/VT President Glenn Lavoie.

“The goal of this event is to bring further awareness to the importance of safety in all work zones across the United States. In Vermont, there are currently two names listed on the memorial, and there are sadly others that are now eligible to be added. We hope that the public will join us and learn more about The Foundation’s work, and what we can all do to interact safely in work zones,” said Debra Ricker, immediate past president of the ATSSA Board of Directors and president of Worksafe Traffic Control Industries.

The memorial will be available for public viewing from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Foundation is a 501(c)3 organization that promotes roadway safety and supports the family and loved ones of fallen roadway workers that were injured or killed in work zone crashes. In addition to the National Work Zone Memorial, The Foundation hosts fundraisers and events throughout the year to raise funds for programs including the Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarship program and the Experience Camps Travel Scholarship program.