Highway safety

In 2006, there were 19 fatalities in Missouri's highway construction zones and 1,193 injuries in 3,426 work-zone crashes. Last year, those numbers dropped to six fatalities and 782 injuries in 2,399 accidents in work zones.

The fact that there were six deaths is unacceptable.

To call attention to work zones and the need for motorists to act responsibly, the Missouri Department of Transportation is expanding its Project Orange. Motorists in the Cape Girardeau area recently noticed the orange lights on the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge, several city buildings, schools and billboards along Interstate 55.

This year, let's all do our part to bring the fatalities in work zones down to where they should be: zero.