By Chad LaRue, Kentucky Association of Highway Contractors
No matter how much we enjoy our work, there’s something special about the moment we step through the door at the end of the day. Home is where we’re reminded why we work so hard—sharing dinner, laughter, and the comfort of family and friends. It’s a daily reward that restores us, preparing us for whatever tomorrow brings.
For road construction workers, making it home safely to their families at the end of the day isn’t just a reward – it’s fulfilling the goal of staying safe in their jobs. When your job is to help build and maintain roads where sedans, SUVs, semis and more are speeding past you, safety must always be top of mind.
According to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Kentucky recorded more than 1,300 work zone crashes – resulting in seven fatalities and 298 injuries. The people affected in these crashes were not only members of work crews, but motorists themselves.
That is why it is so important for Kentucky motorists to make sure they slow down in work zones.
We all have places to be, and life only seems to get busier with time —whether for work, family, or personal commitments. But no schedule is worth risking lives. Work zones are not inconveniences meant to slow you down and build your frustration; they are workplaces where men and women labor in the scorching summer heat and freezing winter cold to build and maintain the roads we all rely on every day. They deserve our patience, attention and respect behind the wheel.
House Bill 664, also known as the Jared Lee Helton Act of 2025, a piece of legislation that was sponsored by Rep. John Blanton of Salyersville, was signed into law by Gov. Beshear earlier this year. It allows the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet to put automated enforcement devices, such as cameras, in work zones to more strictly enforce speed limits in work zones.
“Speeding through work zones isn’t just reckless, it can be deadly,” Gov. Beshear said. “In Kentucky, we believe that protecting our people is always the right thing to do, and now we have a new tool to help make that happen.”
As the Executive Director of the Kentucky Association of Highway Contractors, wholeheartedly agree with the Governor’s sentiment. Protecting workers and motorists is always our members’ top priority, and this new law will help keep everyone safer while they are on Kentucky highways – whether they are driving or working. The National Safety Council reported in 2023 that 61% of work zone crash fatalities were actually the drivers of motor vehicles – with an additional 17% of fatalities coming from passengers of motor vehicles.
I applaud Rep. Blanton and the General Assembly for their work to pass this important legislation, and I thank Governor Beshear and the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet for working together to do the right thing by our work crews and our motorists. Please do your part by slowing down in work zones so we can create a safer Kentucky for everyone.
