We Don’t Drive in Your Office, Please Don’t Text in Our Work Zones

When I was a kid, a friend of mine had a pool. Attached to the fence surrounding her pool was a sign that read, “We don’t swim in your toilet, please don’t pee in our pool.” I thought the sign was hilarious because, let’s face it, the sense of humor of eleven-year-olds is not really that sophisticated.

I thought about that sign again as I watched milling activities on I-57 in Illinois. Not because there was a pool, but because the sign poignantly shows that some activities are appropriate in some places and not in others.

As I watched a crew professional using a high-powered air hose to clean debris off the pavement before milling operations, I thought about the typical office with stacks of papers and organized (or sometimes not so organized) file folders. If our paving professional came into that office using high-powered air hoses, they’d would wreak total havoc. Turns out, that an office is probably not an appropriate place to use an air hose. The idea is ludicrous.

But somehow, it has become common practice to use a cell phone and speed while driving through road construction work zones, even though that is completely inappropriate. Using a cell phone in an office? Yep, completely appropriate, but not while driving and certainly not in a work zone.

So, the next time you drive through a work zone, ask yourself if you would want a dump truck driving through your office, or a paving crew member to scatter your files to the wind. Let’s take a look around and remember the impact we can have — either positively or negatively — on those around us.

Please remember that a work zone is full of living, irreplaceable people with people that love them. Help everyone get home safely — slowing down and putting down your cell phone. That text can wait.?