Work Zone Safety

 

WORK ZONE SAFETY CALENDAR CONTEST

 

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) is gearing up for its 6th annual Illinois Work Zone Safety Calendar Contest and is searching for elementary students in Kindergarten through 6th grade who enjoy drawing and are eager to help promote work zone safety.

 

In 2009, 31 people were killed in Illinois work zones, which included five workers. So far this year, 10 people have been killed in work zones, none of them workers. In 2009, there were 911 people killed on Illinois' roadways, which is the lowest number of motorists killed in Illinois since 1921. While fatalities are dropping in other categories, work zone fatalities continue to level off and have not decreased in recent years.

 

To help prevent these types of fatalities from occurring, the Illinois State Board of Education, the American Traffic Safety Services Foundation (ATSSF) and the Illinois Chapter of the American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA) are sponsoring the 2010-2011 Illinois Work Zone Safety Calendar Contest to help students remind people to slow down in work zones.

 

Over 9,100 students have been educated during the past five years on the importance of driving safely in work zones. IDOT hopes to instill in these students a lifelong awareness of work zone hazards and foster safe driving behavior in the future. Through their artwork, these children are teaching others about the significance of work zone safety.

 

This year's theme is “See Orange. Slow Down. Save Lives.” Poster entries should reflect the student's view of a work zone and what he or she may find in a work zone.

 

The contest categories are as follows: K-1st Grade, 2nd-4th Grade and 5th-6th Grade. Any student can participate in this contest, even if their school decides not to participate. A child's parent or guardian can send in his/her child's drawing to IDOT. For those schools who wish to participate in the contest, the schools must select the top four posters from each category (12 posters total) and submit them to IDOT. All contest drawings must be sent to IDOT by Wednesday, November 3, 2010.

 

Once the entries are received, they will be voted on by three semi-finalist judges and the top 30 entries, 10 from each category, will move on to a judging panel who will determine the 12 finalists. The 12 finalists' drawings will be displayed in the 2012 Illinois Work Zone Safety Calendar. These finalists will also receive their awards and prizes at an awards ceremony in the spring of 2011. The top two finalists in each category will move on to compete in the National Work Zone Safety Calendar Contest sponsored by ATSSA.

 

If you have additional questions, please contact IDOT's contest coordinator, Jessica Keldermans, at 217/785-3062 or visit the contest website at www.dot.il.gov/trafficsafety/WZS/WZScontest.html

 

By Jessica Keldermans, Work Zone Safety Calendar Contest Coordinator/Acting Bureau Chief of Safety Data & Data Services

 

 

 

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