Message Monday - March 30, 2015

March 30, 2015

It’s fun to follow your bracket during March Madness; however, with all three Iowa teams losing early in this year’s NCAA basketball tournament, your bracket is probably “busted.” The key to a perfect bracket is predicting the upsets. Although upsets happen every year, no one really knows which team’s season will end earlier than expected.

Car crashes are very similar to the NCAA brackets. They are random and unpredictable. 99% of all crashes are due to driver error. That means crashes can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. Your best defense against injury and death is playing offense by using your seat belt.

Iowa DOT honored with five Iowa Concrete Paving Association Awards

March 23, 2015

The Iowa Concrete Paving Association recently presented awards to several Iowa DOT projects as part of its “best” Portland cement concrete pavements constructed in 2014. The awards were part of the ICPA’s 51st annual Concrete Paving Workshop held Feb. 4- 5 in Altoona.

Message Monday - March 23, 2015

March 23, 2015

March 23-27 is National Work Zone Awareness Week - "Expect the Unexpected."

This year’s theme was the original theme used 15 years ago in the national event that was created to focus attention on work zone safety and work zone workers. Since the creation of the national campaign by Federal Highway Administration, American Traffic Safety Services Association and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, the number of work zone fatalities has dropped significantly.

Still more can be done. Last year, Iowa had 350 work zone crashes where nine people were killed. Check out today’s video and ask yourself if you expected it to end the way it did. Think about this when driving through Iowa’s work zones this construction season, and expect the unexpected.

https://youtu.be/gNXcILskShs

Personnel updates for Feb. 27 to March 12, 2015

March 20, 2015

Information provided by the Office of Employee Services

Iowa DOT brings home four awards for asphalt paving projects

March 20, 2015

The Asphalt Paving Association of Iowa recently honored five Iowa Department of Transportation projects with Quality Management Awards. According the APAI, the QMA awards recognize the great degree of work that goes into building a quality pavement on the primary and interstate systems.

Smoothness, quality control, density results, and physical appearance all go into the overall rating for the projects submitted in these categories. The winning pavements are the best of the best, indicating that they are not only smooth, but exhibit characteristics that produce long-lasting hot-mix asphalt pavements. 

One click - that's all it takes

March 17, 2015

We’ve all heard the saying, “Only time will tell.” What time is telling, in this case, is the story of lives saved by seat belts. According to law enforcement records, only about 18 percent of Iowans used seat belts in August 1985. In July 1986, Iowa’s primary seat belt law was enacted. By September 1986, seat belt usage was up to 46 percent. When seat belt usage was measured in 1997, nearly 75 percent of drivers in Iowa were buckling up, with a small but steady increase in practically each year since. By 2014, seat belt usage was measured to be nearly 93 percent, one of the highest compliance rates in the nation.

Message Monday - March 16, 2015 -Don't Press Your Luck No Whammies!

March 16, 2015

Luck is defined as success or failure brought on by chance, like winning the lottery. It takes more than luck to stay safe behind the wheel. Just like the game show, you don’t want a Whammy. Practice these five simple things and don’t press your luck.

Slow Down, Drive Sober, Focus on the Road, Stay Alert, Buckle up

Relying on luck will work in very few instances. The next time the driver in this video attempts to run the red light, you can count on a Whammy showing up and taking away more than just game show winnings. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86kWVJydVnI

Message Monday - March 9, 2015

March 9, 2015

What's the easiest thing you can do to survive a crash? Just click it.

By wearing a seat belt, you increase your chances of surviving a crash by almost 50 percent.

Wearing your seat belt could save your life.  

Check out this video by our friends at the Iowa Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2AYNQFGowg&feature=youtu.be

Personnel updates for Feb. 13 to Feb. Feb. 26, 2015

March 5, 2015

Information provided by the Office of Employee Services

The Iowa DOT’s behind-the-scenes safety team

March 3, 2015

Did you know the Iowa Department of Transportation has eyes on our highway system road 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days each year? 

The Iowa DOT’s Traffic Operations Center operators uses state-of-the art technology to continually monitor highway conditions; gather information about highway conditions; and communicate those conditions to the public, Iowa DOT staff, and other state agency personnel. The TOC staff also assists in coordinating Iowa DOT maintenance crews, Iowa Department of Public Safety personnel, and others when resources are needed the event of an emergency.