Drivers should slow down through I-80 work zones, ODOT director says today

GIRARD

“Safety in Construction Work Zones” was the theme of the annual Ohio Department of Transportation construction kickoff news conference conducted amid a large, long-term interstate-widening project.

The event occurred today at the closed U.S. Route 422 entrance ramp to Interstate 80 westbound, which is expected to remain closed through December.

This and other ramp closures are part of a three-year, $102.2 million project to widen I-80 from four to six lanes between state Route 46 in Austintown and state Route 193 (Belmont Avenue) in Liberty Township.

“Our No. 1 issue that we have through this work zone is really speed. People are driving too fast,” said Anthony Urankar, ODOT’s District 4 deputy director.

The speed limit in the construction zone is 55 mph.

“We want the men and women who work behind the zones to come home safely on a daily basis,” he said, adding that next week is National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week.

Read more about the project and his remarks in Saturday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.