Cone Zone Campaign Urges Caution to Protect Roadside Workers

CHILLIWACK — The annual Cone Zone safety awareness campaign launched this week in the Fraser Valley and other parts of British Columbia, emphasizing the need for drivers to slow down and obey work zone laws to protect roadside workers.

“Every time you drive through a roadside work zone, you’re not just passing cones and barriers. You’re in someone’s workplace,” said Trace Acres, Program Director for Road Safety at Work. The campaign is managed with support from the Work Zone Safety Alliance.

A traffic enforcement event in South Surrey marked the campaign’s start, resulting in 42 tickets issued within two hours, with 31 of those for cellphone use. The campaign urges drivers to avoid speeding, aggressive, and distracted driving, and to obey flag persons and traffic signs.

Roadside workers, including traffic control personnel, road maintenance crews, and emergency responders, face significant risks with traffic passing just meters away. From 2014 to 2023, nine workers were killed and 251 were injured in B.C., according to WorkSafeBC.