Michigan Student Puts Human Face on Tragedy of Roadway Work Zone Accidents: Teen Talks about Accident that Killed His Father

Almost 900 people were killed and 37,000 were injured during 1999 in roadway construction zone accidents. A Michigan student came to Washington, D.C., April 9 to put a human face on this public safety problem. He spoke about an accident that killed his father. Doyle’s father was an employee of the Michigan Department of Transportation when he was killed while working on a bridge project in August 1997. As part of National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week, Doyle joined U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norm Mineta and other safety leaders at a ceremony on the Washington, D.C., National Mall, to commemorate and draw attention to those killed in roadway construction zones. The event included a display of 868 orange highway cones, each draped with a black ribbon and representing highway construction workers and motorists killed during 1999.