| RELEASE: CONTACT: |
IMMEDIATE Sande Snead (804) 225-4491 Sande.Snead@VDOT.Virginia.gov |
CO-0665 Dec. 21, 2006 |
VDOT GETS $200,000 TO PROMOTE HIGHWAY SAFETY CORRIDORS
Look for digital billboard on I-95 in Richmond, other advertising in 2007
RICHMOND — Motorists driving near the Philip Morris headquarters on Interstate 95 north in Richmond may notice a new billboard featuring a speedometer showing the difference between life and death on Highway Safety Corridors.
This is part of the Virginia Department of Transportation’s (VDOT’s) 2006-2007 Highway Safety Corridor campaign being carried out with a $200,000 federal safety grant to raise awareness of the corridors. Three Highway Safety Corridors have been designated on interstates in Virginia since the program’s inception in 2003.
A segment of I-81 from Ironto to Salem and segments of I-95 in Richmond and I-95 in Prince William County have been identified as Highway Safety Corridors because of their higher-than-expected crash rates and crash severity, including injuries and fatalities. Motorists who speed in Highway Safety Corridors can be fined up to $500. Fines for criminal offenses such as reckless driving or driving under the influence in these corridors could cost as much as $2,500.
“Highway Safety Corridors have been established to raise awareness and reduce crashes on Virginia’s most crash-prone stretches of interstate,” said VDOT Commissioner David S. Ekern. “This is about saving lives. It’s going to take enforcement, driver education and engineering working together to reduce the number of crashes.”
Virginia State Police will pay extra attention to enforcing the speed limit in these corridors. Special days of increased enforcement will be announced early next year.
Another round of safety corridor awareness advertising will begin in early 2007. Commuter buses traveling through Prince William County’s I-95 corridor and those along I-81 from Roanoke to Blacksburg will carry the same “life and death” speedometer ads advising motorists to use caution in the Highway Safety Corridor. Also, fans attending Virginia Tech home football games in the fall or listening to the statewide Virginia Tech radio network will see and hear reminders about the I-81 Highway Safety Corridor.
For more information on Highway Safety Corridors, go to http://virginiadot.org/programs/ct-highway-safety-corridor.asp
This is part of the Virginia Department of Transportation’s (VDOT’s) 2006-2007 Highway Safety Corridor campaign being carried out with a $200,000 federal safety grant to raise awareness of the corridors. Three Highway Safety Corridors have been designated on interstates in Virginia since the program’s inception in 2003.
A segment of I-81 from Ironto to Salem and segments of I-95 in Richmond and I-95 in Prince William County have been identified as Highway Safety Corridors because of their higher-than-expected crash rates and crash severity, including injuries and fatalities. Motorists who speed in Highway Safety Corridors can be fined up to $500. Fines for criminal offenses such as reckless driving or driving under the influence in these corridors could cost as much as $2,500.
“Highway Safety Corridors have been established to raise awareness and reduce crashes on Virginia’s most crash-prone stretches of interstate,” said VDOT Commissioner David S. Ekern. “This is about saving lives. It’s going to take enforcement, driver education and engineering working together to reduce the number of crashes.”
Virginia State Police will pay extra attention to enforcing the speed limit in these corridors. Special days of increased enforcement will be announced early next year.
Another round of safety corridor awareness advertising will begin in early 2007. Commuter buses traveling through Prince William County’s I-95 corridor and those along I-81 from Roanoke to Blacksburg will carry the same “life and death” speedometer ads advising motorists to use caution in the Highway Safety Corridor. Also, fans attending Virginia Tech home football games in the fall or listening to the statewide Virginia Tech radio network will see and hear reminders about the I-81 Highway Safety Corridor.
For more information on Highway Safety Corridors, go to http://virginiadot.org/programs/ct-highway-safety-corridor.asp
Page last modified: April 3, 2007
