For more information, contact:
Michael Goetzman, Wisconsin DOT
(608) 266-2520, Michael.Goetzman@dot.wi.gov
National Work Zone Memorial to be at Lambeau Field in Green Bay
With the goal of reminding drivers how important it is to keep highway workers, themselves, and their passengers safe, National Work Zone Awareness Week has been scheduled for April 4 – 8, 2011. The theme for the week is “Safer driving. Safer work zones. For everyone.”
National Work Zone Awareness Week began in 1999 when the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA), and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) signed a memorandum of agreement pledging to increase public awareness of work zone safety issues.
Wisconsin has joined the national effort as Governor Scott Walker has designated the week of April 11 – 15, 2011 as Work Zone Awareness Week in Wisconsin. It will coincide with the display of the National Work Zone Memorial in the Atrium of Lambeau Field, home of the XLV Superbowl Champion Green Bay Packers.
The National Work Zone Memorial contains the names of some 1,400 individuals who have died in work zone crashes over the years across America. It includes the names of several Wisconsin workers killed in work zone crashes, including Winnebago County workers Marc Neumeyer and Daniel Melhorn, killed March 7, 2006 along US 41; Fond du Lac County worker Dennis Roeseler, killed on December 18, 2003 along US 41; flagger Sherry Swain, killed October 18, 1999 on WIS 50 in Walworth County; construction worker Peter Messerlie, killed May 14, 1998 on I94 in Waukesha County; Walter Laczkowski, killed September 30, 1998 on WIS 29 in Shawano County; and highway workers Randy Schmidt and Donald Dietzen who died in the 1980s.
The National Work Zone Memorial will be at Lambeau Field until Friday, April 15, 2011.
