National Work Zone Awareness Week: Go Orange!

Kansas Department of Transportation

KDOT workers in Iola, Kansas. Photo courtesy of the Kansas Department of Transportation.

The Kansas Department Transportation and its safety partners are going orange during National Work Zone Awareness Week, April 20-24, to help raise awareness and reduce crashes in work zones.

Safety is important for both the highway workers and motorists. About 9 out of 10 people injured each year in work zone crashes are motorists. Ten people lost their lives and 482 were injured on Kansas roads where there was average of 4.2 work zone crashes every day (1,523 crashes) in 2025.

Check out the activities listed below on ways the public can participate.

Go Orange Day in Kansas

People are encouraged to show support for highway workers and wear something orange on Wednesday, April 22, which is Go Orange Day in Kansas.

Read work zone safety blogs

Personal stories of crashes or close calls in work zones will be shared each day this week from KDOT highway maintenance workers, a Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper and a Kansas Turnpike Authority safety specialist.

Read the stories each day at kansastransportation.blogspot.com.

Free online work zone safety driving course

New drivers are twice as likely to be involved in a fatal crash. Kansas Work Zone Safe is a free online driving course aimed at teaching new drivers how to safely navigate through work zones. Drivers can access the course at https://webuildkansas.com/workzonesafe

Go orange all week

Buildings, bridges, fountains and more will be lit in orange throughout the safety week. In addition to many KDOT buildings across the state, participating locations include:

Governor’s Mansion in Topeka

Visitors Center in the Capitol

Front of the Topeka City Hall building

Front of the Wichita City Hall building

Evergy Plaza/downtown Kansas Avenue lights in Topeka

Bridges at U.S. 54/Webb Road junction and U.S. 54/Greenwich Road in Wichita

Travel Information Center on I-70 near Goodland

City of Neodesha fountain

Kansas Turnpike Authority buildings in Topeka and Wichita

Buildings in Parsons, Garnett and Salina.

Electronic message signs along highways across the state will also promote work zone safety when available.

Bridge at I-35/119th Street in Olathe.

Work Zone Safety webpage

Check out all the information on KDOT’s work zone safety webpage. There are coloring pages, an activity book, a work zone safety fact sheet, a new Public Service Announcement that’s being aired across the state and more.

The Go Orange effort is part of National Work Zone Awareness Week, a national safety campaign that KDOT and numerous partner organizations participate in every year. The campaign highlights the dangers faced by highway workers and motorists in work zones and encourages motorists to use safer driving behaviors.