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WILKES-BARRE &mdash; The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, along with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, are urging motorists to drive safely in work zones after three separate work zone intrusions recently resulted in motorists hitting a PennDOT crash truck.
				&ldquo;Even though construction season is winding down in many places, we still have road crews out there,&rdquo; said PennDOT Secretary Yassmin Gramian. &ldquo;Please don&rsquo;t speed, never drive distracted, and always buckle up, especially in work zones.&rdquo;
				According to PennDOT data, in 2019 there were 1,754 work zone crashes, resulting in 16 fatalities.
				Since 1970, 89 PennDOT employees have died in the line of duty.
				The PUC recognized National Critical Infrastructure Security Month, noting the importance of Pennsylvania&rsquo;s critical utility systems and the extensive behind-the-scenes efforts by public utilities and thousands of utility workers in keeping our communities safe and secure.
				&ldquo;As we grappled with all the challenges of 2020, it is important to recognize the work of our public utilities, and especially the women and men who have kept essential systems operating in the face of COVID-19, severe weather, and an assortment of other physical and cyber threats,&rdquo; said PUC Chair Gladys Brown Dutrieuille, who also chairs the Committee on Critical Infrastructure for the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC).
				Dutrieuille said utilities and utility workers are the backbone of daily activities:
				&#8226; Powering our homes and businesses; fueling our heating and cooking;
				&#8226; Providing clean drinking water; transporting goods and people where they are needed;
				&#8226; Connecting us with work, family and friends.
				While the security and resilience of critical utility infrastructure is recognized every November, the work of keeping these critical systems secure and operating is a year-round task.
				&ldquo;Not only have Pennsylvania&rsquo;s utilities continued to provide service throughout COVID-19 shutdowns and business restrictions, but they also continued to complete critical infrastructure improvement projects,&rdquo; Dutrieuille said. &ldquo;Along the way, they also focused on keeping their workers healthy, protecting the public during any face-to-face interactions, and enhancing their online and virtual outreach to customers.&rdquo;
				Collectively, Pennsylvania&rsquo;s electric, natural gas and water utilities targeted $1.9 billion in accelerated infrastructure improvement work during 2020 &mdash; and are on track to complete those essential projects.
				PennDOT data
				In addition to crash data from police reports, PennDOT monitors work-zone safety with internal reports.
				As of Nov. 10, there have been 72 reported intrusions in PennDOT work zones.
				Of those work-zone intrusions, seven resulted in injures to PennDOT employees, 25 caused damage to PennDOT fleet or equipment, and 40 did not result in injury or damage but had the potential to do so.
				Pennsylvania law states that anyone stopped by law enforcement for violating the posted speed limit by more than 5 mph will face doubled fines. The fine is determined based on the amount the driver is traveling over the speed limit.
				Gov. Tom Wolf signed a law in 2016 that says any driver who causes serious bodily injury within a work zone could face up to $5,000 in fines and a six-month license suspension, and a driver causing a death within a work zone could face up to a $10,000 fine and one-year license suspension. Drivers who don&rsquo;t turn on their headlights in posted work zones face a $25 fine.
				Additionally, in an effort to change unsafe driving behaviors in work zones, Pennsylvania&rsquo;s Automated Work Zone Speed Enforcement began earlier this year. The program uses vehicle-mounted systems to detect and record motorists exceeding posted work zone speed limits by 11 miles per hour or more using electronic speed timing devices.
				AWZSE systems can be deployed in active work zones, where workers are present, on the turnpike as well as any active work zone on a federal aid highway &mdash; this includes higher class roadways like interstates, major arterials, and numbered routes.
				Registered owners will receive a warning letter for a first offense, a violation notice and $75 fine for a second offense, and a violation notice and $150 fine for third and subsequent offenses. These violations are civil penalties only; no points will be assessed to driver&rsquo;s licenses.
				For more information on work zone safety visit, www.PennDOT.gov/Safety.

PennDOT, PUC urge motorists to use caution in work zones