The Kansas Department of Transportation and numerous transportation partners who work along the roadways know why work zone safety is so important.

“I yelled at the crew in the work zone and threw my flagging paddle towards the middle of the lane that I was standing in and flung myself into the ditch,” said KDOT Highway Maintenance Supervisor Kade Cooper, who is from Belleville. “From what I could hear, the flagging paddle made contact with the car where I would have been standing, and that is what got the driver’s attention.”

Equipment Operator Kayne Kraus from Admire has worked for the Kansas Turnpike Authority for two years. While out preparing to paint, he heard a loud boom, “and when I turned around, there was a vehicle sandwiched between the wall and the attenuator,” he said. “The driver had fallen asleep at the wheel and hit the attenuator that was a couple hundred feet behind me.”

Close calls are all too common for highway workers, law enforcement and emergency responders who are serving the public. Finding ways to improve work zone safety is imperative.

“If your job puts you along the highway, it’s important for you to not only be able to work safely but to feel safe as well,” said KDOT State Transportation Engineer Burt Morey.

Highway workers shared other stories of near misses at the statewide work zone safety event in Topeka today at the KDOT Gage office. This event is one of several activities in Kansas as part of National Work Zone Awareness Week, April 8-12, which raises awareness of the dangers highway workers and motorists face in work zones. Last year in Kansas, there were 1,396 work zone crashes – 398 people were injured and five people were killed.

Highway workers and others are sharing work zone stories each day this week in a blog series at http://kansastransportation.blogspot.com/. Electronic message boards along the highways will also have rotating work zone safety messages.

Buildings and structures across Kansas will be lit in orange all week to highlight work zone safety. Check out the Governor’s Mansion, the Amelia Earhart Bridge in Atchison, the Visitor’s Center in the Capitol, the Eisenhower State Office Building in Topeka, the front of the Topeka City Hall, the Travel Information Center on I-70 near Goodland and KDOT offices in Topeka, Salina, Norton, Chanute, Hutchinson and Garden City.

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The City Hall building in Topeka was lit in orange last year as part of National Work Zone Awareness Week.

This “Go Orange” movement is part of National Work Zone Awareness Week, a national safety campaign KDOT and several partner organizations participate in every year. The campaign highlights the dangers faced by highway workers and motorists in work zones and promotes safer behaviors. People are encouraged to participate by wearing orange on Thursday, April 11, the official Go Orange Day! in Kansas.

Stories will be shared each day by highway workers and law enforcement about their experiences in work zones at http://kansastransportation.blogspot.com/ . Other information can be found on the KDOT website at www.ksdot.org.

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Governor Kelly commends bipartisan compromise, signs education bill

The following remarks are from Governor Laura Kelly delivered at the bill signing ceremony for Senate Bill 16, the bipartisan education bill:

Throughout the 2018 campaign, I told Kansans I wanted to be the “education governor.” And I meant it. It is my number one priority.

After the election, when I sat down with my budget director to put together my budget recommendation, public education was the very first topic of discussion. We looked at the numbers for a long time.

Using the most recent Supreme Court ruling on school finance as a guide, I adopted a plan that was widely embraced as the best path to ending years of school finance litigation.

On Thursday of this week, the Kansas Legislature endorsed this plan as well. I’m pleased we were able to come to a consensus on this critical issue.

Before I sign this bill, I’d like to commend the Kansas House of Representatives and the Kansas Senate for their diligent work. Their efforts resulted in overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation that will inject $90 million more into our public schools. It is a true victory for Kansas.

I also want to recognize an important group of legislators – Senators Molly Baumgartner, Anthony Hensley, and Jim Denning, as well as Representative Valdenia Winn, who shepherded this bill through the conference committee process.

They stood strong for our kids. I thank each of them for their hard work and commitment to bringing us closer to a resolution.

After a significant increase in funding last year, this plan addresses the Kansas Supreme Court ruling and represents what we all hope to be the final step towards fully funding our schools – and maintaining adequate funding in the years to come.

It is a reasonable, good-faith effort that is based on the plan put forth by the Kansas Department of Education and endorsed by the State Board of Education.

Of course, there’s a reason we’re all here on a Saturday. We have an urgent deadline to meet, and we simply do not have a minute to lose.

My signature on Senate Bill 16 is not the end of this discussion. It will make its way across the street to the Kansas Supreme Court. Briefs are due on April 15. Oral arguments will take place on May 9.

No one can predict what the court will rule. But one thing is for certain: this legislation represents a significant bipartisan effort to address the last remaining component of last summer’s court ruling. It is a meaningful, reasonable plan that maintains the stability of the rest of the state’s budget.

The saga over public education funding has been long and hard, and it’s time for it to be settled. I believe that this legislation will allow us to finally end the cycle of litigation and move forward.

For this reason, I am so proud today to sign Senate Bill 16.

Governor applauds passage of school finance conference committee report

The following statement is from Governor Laura Kelly following the passage of the school funding package:

“The Kansas Legislature took an important step today towards addressing the needs of our students, supporting our teachers and fully funding our schools. I’m proud this reasonable, commonsense plan was embraced with bipartisan support today. Kansans want their leaders to work together to move our state forward.

“By investing in our local schools, we can ensure that all Kansas children – no matter who they are or where they live – have the opportunity to succeed.”

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Governor Laura Kelly declares disappointment with stalling tactics, calls on Senate leadership “to do their job”

Topeka – On behalf of thousands of Kansans struggling to secure affordable healthcare, Governor Laura Kelly held a press conference this morning calling on the Kansas Senate leadership to allow a vote on Medicaid expansion this week.

“By design, the legislation I presented was very similar to a plan that passed the legislature in 2017 with strong bipartisan support. That’s why I’m disappointed with Senate leadership for blocking the debate and the committee process,” Governor Kelly said. “Now with the regular session winding down, “halfway there” isn’t good enough.”

Almost two weeks ago, a bipartisan coalition in the Kansas House passed Medicaid expansion. Governor Kelly applauded this coalition during the press conference, recognizing their strength and determination in moving Medicaid expansion forward.

“I have always endorsed efforts to carefully study issues before taking action,” Governor Kelly said. “But when it comes to Medicaid expansion, “study” is a code word for “stall.” The House did what’s right for Kansas – I’m calling on the Senate to do the same.”

During the press conference, Governor Kelly outlined the timeline of Medicaid expansion in recent years. In 2011, Governor Sam Brownback asked Kansans to wait until after the 2012 Presidential Election to act on Medicaid. After the 2012 election, Kansas still failed to act. Brownback then insisted Medicaid could not be expanded until the Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  The Supreme Court upheld the ACA in 2015. Kansas still did not act. When the Legislature overwhelmingly approved Medicaid expansion in 2017, Brownback vetoed the bill.

By not expanding Medicaid, Kansas has forfeited over $3.2 billion of our tax dollars to other states. The economic benefits of expansion have been clearly documented. The governor noted in the press conference that there have been 300 published studies and reports on the positive impact of Medicaid expansion in other states, including:

• A reduced poverty rate;
• A growth in the number of healthcare related jobs, spurring economic growth;
• A healthier, insured population;
• A significantly lower level of uncompensated care for health facilities.

Medicaid expansion passed the Kansas House of Representatives on March 21. The governor released her plan on January 29, 2019. Neither chamber held hearings on the bill or scheduled a floor vote.

Texting, other distractions have led to thousands of crashes in Kansas

TOPEKA, Kan. — In 2017, 28 percent of all traffic crashes in Kansas were attributed to driver inattention or distractions. April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month and the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) and law enforcement agencies across the state are working to educate drivers of the dangers of driving while distracted. Kansans will see a multi-media campaign running to support these efforts.

While distracted driving is most often associated with cell phone use, many other situations can cause distractions in the car. Interacting with children, eating food, using other electronic devices, and even things happening outside the vehicle contributed to more than 16,000 distracted driving crashes in Kansas in 2017.

“Taking your eyes off the road to send a text is like driving blindfolded down a football field,” said Chris Bortz, Traffic Safety Program Manager for KDOT. “You wouldn’t risk driving blindfolded, yet we see people on their phones or eating or putting on makeup every day on our roads.”

Many people may not know that distracted driving can be a ticketable offense in Kansas. For example, any texting, social media or internet activity on your phone can lead to a minimum $60 ticket plus court costs. However, the worst result of distracted driving would be to cause an injury or death.

“We are facing an epidemic. Too many people are injured or killed due to inattention on our roads. Distracted driving crashes are 100 percent preventable,” said KDOT Secretary Julie Lorenz. “Protecting yourself, your passengers and other Kansans is as simple as putting the phone down and avoiding all other distractions in the car.”

Law enforcement officers also encourage Kansans to “just drive” when they are behind the wheel. If your attention is anywhere other than the road, you’re driving distracted, and you’re driving dangerous. Drivers can minimize distractions by turning off electronic devices and keeping both eyes on the road ahead at all times. They also encourage passengers to hold their driver accountable and to not be a distraction themselves.