BARBOURSVILLE, W.Va.— After three tractor trailer accidents within 24 hours, the West Virginia Department of Transportation is urging motorists to slow down and pay attention when on Interstate 64 in the work zone.
Thursday, one tractor trailer crash shut down multiple lanes on the interstate near the Barboursville exit and as crews were opening up eastbound lanes a second crash made them close the lanes down again. And then on Friday morning, another tractor trailer caught fire closing down more lanes of the interstate. West Virginia Division of Highways crews on Thursday, assisted contractors and local law enforcement on site to get the roadways open as quickly as possible. As of Friday afternoon, all lanes were cleared and opened.
In light of these incidents, the DOH Traffic Engineering Division will be conducting a safety review of the I-64 work zones in the upcoming days. According to the department, the crashes that occurred on Thursday are considered to be the result of driver error.
After a crash occurs on a roadway, WVDOH crews will report the crash to the Transportation Management Center to get information to emergency services.
The WVDOH will be asking the incident commander from law enforcement on scene what they will need from the department, including traffic control, equipment, sand, etc. and the department will also be contacting their own safety officer and investigator with crash information.
On Thursday, the construction project experienced damage to the top 2 to 2.5 inches of asphalt in both locations, two temporary impact attenuators were destroyed and the median wall also sustained damages. Crews worked to repair the asphalt, and the media wall damage will be assessed for total limits of repair, because the DOH wants to make sure that all lanes are safe for people to travel on.
The WVDOH is reminding people that the fines are doubled if they are caught speeding in a work zone and that work zones change daily and it’s every driver’s responsibility to be aware behind the wheel and obey all traffic laws.
To see real-time traffic updates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, visit wv511.org or through the WV 511 Drive Safe app.