Plans for national memorial to fallen workers announced at NWZAW national kickoff

Plans for national memorial to fallen workers announced at NWZAW national kickoff

Shari DiDomenico speaks about her late son, Andrew DiDomenico, today at the national kickoff for National Work Zone Awareness Week in Connecticut.

FARMINGTON, Conn. – Shari DiDomenico has been advocating on behalf of roadway workers since a work zone crash took the life of her 26-year-old son Andrew in 2024.

Today, at the national kickoff for National Work Zone Awareness Week (NWZAW), she was surrounded by people who share her commitment, including Federal Highway Administration Administrator Sean McMaster who announced plans for a national memorial to fallen workers.

FHWA Administrator Sean McMaster

Andrew DiDomenico worked as a maintainer for the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) when he was struck by a motorist and killed in June 2024.

CTDOT hosted today’s national kickoff for NWZAW, a five-day series of events designed to raise the public’s attention to the importance of safe driving in and around roadway work zones. This year’s theme is “Safe Actions Save Lives” and is a message echoed through the remarks of each speaker.

CTDOT Commissioner Garrett T. Eucalitto shared about an incident two weeks ago when a department truck was struck and an employee injured after a motorist ignored a stop sign. He also shared about an incident last week when a driver “blew past a work zone” and then sped around a state trooper and a crash truck as crews were picking up cones and signs.

Had an alert crash truck driver not moved quickly to shield the workers, it could have been tragic.

“These are just two recent examples of the dangerous situations our crews face every single day,” Eucalitto said. “This is not rare. It’s routine and it’s preventable.”

Connecticut has been working on behalf of roadway workers through legislation, innovation and training but the work is not done, speakers said.

Every day, on average, at least two people are killed in work zones across the country, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data.  Numbers released Monday show 850 people were killed in work zones in 2024, the most recent year for which data is available. Of those killed, 673 were drivers and their passengers, reinforcing the message that Safe Actions Save Lives.

ATSSA partnered with FHWA and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in establishing NWZAW as an annual event in 1999. The event unites roadway safety advocates nationwide through partnerships with state departments of transportation (DOTs), national road safety organizations, government agencies, private companies and individuals.

“We thank the Connecticut Department of Transportation for hosting this year’s national kickoff event and engaging in this important industry initiative. We also thank FHWA and AASHTO for their partnership in bringing awareness to work zone safety, honoring fallen workers and encouraging safe choices behind the wheel,” said ATSSA President & CEO Stacy Tetschner. “We are pleased to join with states, organizations and communities in the shared mission of making roads safe, and we encourage all roadway safety partners to join the week’s activities and share its message of Safe Actions Save Lives.”

A recording of today’s National Work Zone Awareness Week kickoff event is now available.