Pennsylvania adds state police troopers to highway work zones around Philadelphia to reduce crashes
Pennsylvania State Police and PennDOT are warning drivers: unsafe driving in a work zone could get you pulled over.
The two agencies say state troopers have been embedded in construction zones across southeastern Pennsylvania in an effort to deter unsafe driving in construction zones on interstates and other state highways.
The troopers are clad in PennDOT hard hats and vests.
"If a trooper notices a violation, they communicate with another trooper in a marked PSP patrol unit to initiate a traffic stop," PennDOT said in a news release.
While the law requires drivers to slow down, use their headlights and obey speed limits in work zones, there were over 1,200 work zone crashes in the commonwealth in 2023, and 22 people were killed in those crashes.
"Our mission was to make people cognizant of the potential dangers they create and deter people from driving distracted in these areas," Capt. Gerard McShea said in a news conference.
As of this week, 17 of the combined details have occurred in the region, McShea said.