Never become complacent

Rick Carson, seated in center, is surrounded by his family.

My name is Rick Carson and I am the Equipment Operator Specialist for the Syracuse Subarea office. I am coming up on my fifth year as a KDOT employee, having served as Specialist since July 2017.

During my short tenure as a KDOT employee, I have seen quite a few different circumstances that could have turned out very bad. I learned from early on, that the best thing you can do to keep yourself safe is to keep your head on a constant swivel.

One of the most unforgettable experiences happened to me in the summer of 2019.We were patching holes on K-27 in the south part of Syracuse. The stretch of roadway is a four-lane undivided highway. The crew was working on the inside lane of the northbound lane. We had set up our work zone prior to beginning work with all the proper signs, cones, attenuator and a wedge diverting traffic into the right-hand lane. 

At some point that morning, I was standing along the center line, but still in the lane we were working in. There was some debris that had rolled over the center line, and I was going to step over the center line to sweep it back over into the hole. I was facing the north and looked to make sure no traffic was coming. 

I never turned to look south, because, there shouldn’t have been any traffic coming from that way, because we had our wedge set up pushing them right. WRONG! A truck coming from the south had crossed over the double yellow line. It was traveling north in the southbound lane and what was probably over the speed limit.

Luckily, one of my co-workers was looking that way and was able to get my attention, and I was able to step out of the way.

Thinking about it later that day, the one word that came to my mind was COMPLACENT. That day, at that particular time, I had become complacent and overly comfortable with my surroundings.

To my fellow KDOT workers, I would just like to remind you all that no matter what you are doing, always take the extra time to look around and make sure that you are doing it carefully. And, always watch out for your co-workers.

To the traveling public, KDOT does what they do, to try and keep your family safe on the highways. So in your travels, if/when you come up on any workers, anywhere, PLEASE, slow down, move over and obey the signs. Drive like it is your family out there along the side of the road. Because, we ARE somebody’s family.

#MoveOverKS Encourages drivers to be cautious of road workers

Flashing lights, sirens, orange cones and neon vests should all tell you one thing: Move over and give emergency response crews, law enforcement and highway workers room to work.

The Federal Highway Administration has declared Nov. 13 to 19 Traffic Incident Response Week. During this week and throughout the entire year, KDOT would like to remind drivers that all road workers should be respected and protected. Whether they are emergency responders at a traffic emergency, KDOT or county workers performing maintenance on the roads or a law enforcement professional performing a traffic stop, these workers need space to do their jobs and stay safe.


KDOT has initiated a campaign called #MoveOverKS, which is designed remind drivers on all roadways to give roadside workers space to do their jobs and perform their service. In order to convey the message, images were taken of KDOT highway workers reminding everyone who sees them why they need all drivers to #moveover and give them space. The images are available across KDOT’s social media pages including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Steve Baalman, a KDOT Engineer in Topeka, said that the use of cell phones makes it noticeably scarier to work along highways.

“We too often see folks with their faces buried in their cell phones,” Baalman said. “Obviously with the texting, it’s very spooky for us.”

Baalman said that despite the risks, working along the highways is worth it. 

“I presume most folks are like me,” Baalman said. “We like the work, the service and the sense of accomplishment. It makes it worthwhile for those folks who are driving it every day.”

Kansas enacted the Move Over Law in 2006, requiring that drivers move over when approaching workers on the side of the road and if traffic doesn’t allow for that, to at least slow down. Follow the #MoveOverKS campaign and see why KDOT employees are asking you to move over.