Atlanta Work Zone Safety Attorney | Peachtree City Unsafe Construction Site Lawyer

Georgia Unsafe Construction Work Zone Safety Lawyer

Work Zone Cases present in different forms. Here are some examples:

A driver comes around a corner and traffic is backed up and stopped. The driver is unable to stop before striking the back of the vehicle in front of him. Another driver is stopped in a long line of cars due to a construction zone ahead, when a truck comes around corner and hits the driver in rear. Driver of the truck says he could not stop in time.
Lane Closure – Driver approaches construction site and starts to merge right as indicated by construction signs, only to learn at the last minute other vehicles are merging left. In the confusion, a collision occurs.
Driver comes around curve and drifts over white line, but encounters unexpected and unsigned pavement edge drop-off. Driver tries to recover lane, but shoots across roadway into oncoming traffic and is gravely injured.
Driver drifts toward edge of lane and falls over 18” drop-off, causing loss of control, impact and serious injury.
Confusing signs or misplaced barrels cause driver to lose control, wreck, and injure himself and/or others.
Debris in roadway from construction site causes loss of control.
Negligent flaggers cause collision.

Before work is done on or near a road, someone is supposed to make sure the worksite is safe for both workers and motorists. The general rule is that signs, traffic control devices and barriers are supposed to give motorists clear direction on how to get through the work zone. It is well understood and appreciated that whenever temporary traffic control (TTC) is necessary, extreme care must be taken to positively and safely guide traffic. TTC zones are necessary whenever construction or maintenance work is being done on a roadway, roadway shoulder or roadway right-of-way. The kind and type of TTC devices necessary to safely guide traffic depend on the nature and duration of the work being done and the characteristics of the roadway involved.

If you need a lawyer who knows about Work Zone Safety and the applicable standards, contact The Law Offices of Joseph A. Fried now.

The Way It Works

The kind and type of TTC devices necessary to safely guide traffic depend upon the nature and duration of the work being done and the characteristics of the roadway involved. In large construction projects, whether done pursuant to a contract with the DOT or a Permit from the DOT, a full and complete Traffic Control Plan is required to be prepared, submitted and approved by the DOT prior to any work being performed. In smaller projects, while a formal plan may not need to be submitted or approved, the principals of work zone safety are nonetheless required to be followed.

DOT Contract and Subcontracts

When the DOT contracts with another entity to perform roadway construction, repair or maintenance activities, the contract (usually referred to as the “Prime” or “Tier 1” contract) will invariably contain provisions related to safety and will place the burden on the contractor for properly providing for safety. Typically the safety provisions are contained in Section 150 of the contract and they expressly adopt and incorporate DOT Special Provisions, Section 150 and its sub-parts, as well as the plans and specifications for the work at issue. Also incorporated is the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), “MUTCD” is a commonly-known acronym for the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, which is a federal publication that has been adopted by the State of Georgia and is considered the bible of traffic control. In larger contracts, a Traffic Control Plan is required as are the designation of Worksite Traffic Control Supervisors, who are supposed to be trained personnel who are charged with the selection, installation, maintenance and implementation of the Traffic Control Plan and all traffic control devices and practices in accord with the contract. Specific subparts of Section 150 apply to the Traffic Control Plan, channelizing devices, flaggers, etc. Again, the DOT delegates the safety responsibility to the contractor, who accepts the delegation in the Contract.

Oftentimes, the Tier One contractor will subcontract with others, such as paving contractors. When this occurs the subcontracts will invariably incorporate by reference the Prime contract (this incorporation is often required under the Prime Contract). Again, there should be clear delineation of what entity has responsibility for various aspects of the Traffic Control Plan and its implementation. Obtaining and studying these documents is imperative to the identification of who is responsible and should be held liable for any damages

DOT Permit

When someone other than the DOT wishes to perform work in the right-of-way of a state highway (e.g., commercial driveway work, utility work, installation of business signs, maintenance, and the like) he or she is required to obtain a permit from the DOT.

The Permit is subject to General Notes, which reference various standards and guidelines applicable to the work for which the permit is issued. First, the General Notes provide that: “All signing …, etc. to be installed by applicant per M.U.T.C.D.” (General Notes, Traffic Control, ¶ 4) Further, the General Notes provide: “All work and materials shall be in strict and entire conformity with the approved plans and in accordance with the Standard Specifications, 1993 Edition and the 1997 Supplemental Specifications Book.” (General Notes, General, ¶ 1) These standards are DOT publications. Finally, the DOT publishes Regulations for Driveway and Encroachment Control, which are applicable to permitted projects. Accordingly, at least four bodies of standards expressly apply to the work performed under the permit: the MUTCD, the 1993 Standard Specifications, the 1997 Supplemental Specifications and the Regulations for Driveway and Encroachment Control.

Further, the 1993 Standard Specifications, which were plainly applicable to the permit on the face of the General Notes, expressly incorporates Section 150 of the DOT Special Provisions, a fifth body of standards, through repeated references. (1993 Standard Specifications, §§ 104.05, 105.04, 107.07, 107.09). Section 150 of the Special Provisions is the only place in all of the DOT published standards – the 1993 Standard Specifications, the 1997 Supplemental Specifications, the Special Provisions, and the Regulations on Driveway and Encroachment Control – that addresses the requirements for traffic control on a permitted project.

The 1993 Standard Specifications repeatedly incorporate these rules only on traffic control in the sections set out below:

The Contractor shall maintain the project from the beginning of construction operations until maintenance acceptance or final acceptance of the project …. This maintenance shall constitute continuous and effective work prosecuted day by day with adequate equipment and forces to the end that the roadway or structures are kept in satisfactory condition at all times. This includes signing, pavement markings, and traffic control devices as outlined in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, Section 150, Project Plans and Special Provisions for Traffic Control.

104.05, p. 16) (emphasis added) The same document further provides:

These Standard Specifications, the Supplemental Specifications, the Plans, Special Provisions and all supplementary documents are essential parts of the Contract, and a requirement occurring in one is as binding as though occurring in all. They are intended to be complementary and to describe and provide for a complete work.

105.04, p. 23) (emphasis added) Additionally, the same section of the Standard Specifications lists a hierarchy of the applicable standards, and at the top of the hierarchy are the Special Provisions. (§ 105.04)

Further, the Standard Specifications also provide, in a section entitled “Public Convenience and Safety,” as follows:

… The safety and convenience of the general public and the residents along the highway and the protection of persons and property shall be provided for by the Contractor as specified under Sub-Sections 104.05, 107.09 and Section 150, the Project Plans, and Special Provisions.

107.07, p. 44) (emphasis added) Finally, the Standard Specifications also provide:

The Contractor shall furnish, install, and maintain all necessary and required barricades, signs, and other traffic control devices in accordance with these Specifications, Projects Plans, Special Provisions, and the MUTCD, and take all necessary precautions for the protection of the work and safety of the public.

107.09, p. 45) (emphasis added) Nothing contained in the 1997 Supplemental Specifications altered this language.

Finally, the 1993 Standard Specifications contain their own Section 150, entitled “Traffic Control.” That section provides only as follows: “The Specifications for the Work covered un [sic] this Section will be either a Special Provision in the Proposal or will be included in the current Supplemental Specifications Book.” (Exhibit H, § 150) (emphasis added). There is no Section 150 in the 1997 Supplemental Specifications; there is a substantive Section 150 only in the Special Provisions.

Section 150 of the special provisions applies to Permitted projects just like it does to Contracted jobs. It is in the specific subsections of Section 150 that details of precise work zone safety applications are found.

MUTCD and other sources

In addition to looking at the contracts, subcontracts and referenced DOT publication like the Standard Specifications and Special Provisions, it is important to keep in mind that all contracts and permits, as well as Georgia law itself, incorporate the provisions of the MUTCD. Of specific importance in work zone safety cases is Chapter 6 of the MUTCD, which addresses temporary traffic control.

In addition to the MUTCD, the following sites provide additional information specifically related to work zone operations or organizations and programs that address work zone issues. The Work Zone Safety Information Clearinghouse maintained by the Texas Transportation Institute is a particularly valuable source of current work zone information and contacts.

For a primer on handling these cases, lawyers can refer to the presentation of Joseph A. Fried at the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association 2007 Auto Torts Seminar.