A new law requiring that drivers turn on their headlights in construction zones has left many people in the dark.
"I know about the law," said Gavin McCullum, who commutes Downtown from Mt. Washington. "But what's the point if you're driving in the daytime⢠I don't understand why I should waste my battery. It just doesn't seem like it matters."
So what is the pointâ¢
The point, said Pennsylvania Department of Transportation spokeswoman Cathy Tress, is safety.
The law is designed to make drivers aware they are entering a work zone. Tress also said the lights make it easier for construction workers to see oncoming vehicles.
People who have daytime running lights won't be cited if they don't turn on their headlights -- for now. PennDOT is reconsidering that stance, said Tress.
The most recent data available indicate that 27 people were killed in work areas in 2001, according to Tress. Three were construction workers. Since 1996, there have been more than 10,000 work zone crashes statewide.
Molly Williams is no stranger to construction. She drives from her Dormont home to Downtown.
"Actually, I usually don't bother" to turn on the headlights, she said. "If I'm riding with my friend, he'll yell and tell me to do it, but no one else does it, either. If it's a busy area, or if I see a lot of other people doing it, then maybe I'll turn them on. I don't think it does anything.
"But then again, I'm not out there working," Williams said.
Motorists must be pulled over for another reason before they can be ticketed for not flipping the switch -- although an extra $25 might seem like pocket change when compared to a construction speeding fine.
The measure is part of a work-zone safety law enacted Feb. 21 that also includes a new speeding penalty. Driving 11 mph over the speed limit in an active construction zone can result in a 15-day license suspension.
That's good news to construction foreman Bill Muller of Maton-Diamond contractors. Muller's crew is busy pouring concrete to repair the intersection of Green Tree and Swallow Hill roads in Scott.
"I'd say people turn on their lights 50 percent of the time," he said. "I like the law, and I especially like the 11 mph part of it. It's good because it raises awareness to people that they're in a work zone. Look how close we are to the traffic, and the speeding is worse on the interstate."
