MnDOT turns to tech to keep work zones safe

Starting Monday, motorists on Interstate 94 in the east metro will have access to fewer lanes as the Minnesota Department of Transportation begins a major resurfacing and shoulder expansion project that will take two years.

Drivers also will encounter dynamic speed-limit signs put up at the request of workers who will be doing their jobs just feet from the nearly 100,000 vehicles that whiz by each day.

Known as speed wizards, the electronic signs display the speed limit for the work zone on the top half and the motorist's speed on the bottom. The signs flash when drivers are going too fast.

The solar-powered wizards are among the newest pieces of technology MnDOT is rolling out to keep work zones safe and encourage drivers to comply with posted speeds.

"We are trying to combat speeds," said Michelle Moser, a MnDOT work zone engineer. "It's one of our top priorities. When something is flashing at you going more than 10 mph over, that does tend to slow down the majority of drivers."

While it's always safety first — a key message that will be reiterated over and over as part of National Work Zone Awareness Week — speed wizards also benefit motorists.

With static signs, construction-zone speed limits are the law 24 hours a day, even when workers are not present. With the wizards, speed limits can be set to slower speeds during the day and adjusted upward at other times, such as when workers are gone or the work is on pause — cases where drivers often don't see the need to obey.

"We can have various speed limits in work zones and where work is happening," Moser said.

Another bonus comes in that the data the devices collect will be integrated into the state's 511 road information system and pushed out in real time to navigation apps such as Waze and Google.

Drivers will know if the right or left lane is closed before arriving at the work zone. They also will know where trucks are entering the roadway and how much time it could take to get through, Moser said.

"The traveling public will notice more accurate information on their navigation systems, and we are proud of that," she said.

MnDOT also can get data about traffic volumes and perhaps time projects to be less disruptive, said Brady Markell with Street Smart, a company in Columbus, Minn., that specializes in integrating technology in work zones and is partnering with MnDOT.

"It may be that we can start an hour earlier with a savings to the taxpayer," he said.

As work zones get smarter, drivers need to do the same. From 2019 to 2021, there were 7,823 work zone crashes in the state, leading to 92 serious injuries and 28 deaths, according to MnDOT.

"Work with us," Moser said. "Everybody has a role to play in work zone safety. Slow down and pay attention."