Woodstock Fatality - Work Zone or not?

Gus Philpott
Woodstock Advocate
August 23, 2011

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) and police make a big deal of speeding in work zones and cell phone use in work zones, and with good reason. Neither is mentioned in reports of yesterday's fatal accident on U.S. 14, just west of Ill. Route 47 in Woodstock.

An IDOT worker was killed by a westbound car on Monday morning. That roadway was recently repaved, and there are no construction barrels or warning signs there.

According to press information provided to the Northwest Herald, but not posted on the police department's website, Woodstock Police said that the IDOT worker was not in a construction zone. He was measuring the width of the roadway.

That probably had to do with planned painting of new lane lines on the resurfaced roadway.

Later in this morning's article an IDOT spokesman is quoted as having said that the worker's "...death marked the first work zone fatality involving a worker this year."

Police have already cited the 67-year-old driver for failure to use due care with a pedestrian "and further charges are pending on the results of blood work." I note that the police did not say "may" be filed. The words were "are pending". That's rather ominous.