As police begin to enforce a law that restricts Pennsylvania motorists from holding their phones while driving, state police in Armstrong County say they’re planning to embed troopers in work sites in an effort to halt distracted drivers.
The initiative, which police are calling Operation Yellow Jacket, will place troopers in PennDOT vehicles within active construction zones to monitor for traffic violations, according to a joint release by state police and PennDOT.
If an on-site trooper notices an infraction, such as speeding, tailgating or distracted driving, they will communicate with a marked state police vehicle nearby to initiate a traffic stop, the statement said.
Lt. Joseph Zandarski said the operation will begin Friday in conjunction with the beginning of enforcement of Paul Miller’s Law, which bars drivers from using their phones, even at stoplights or during lulls in traffic.
The law went into effect last year, but officers only issued warnings for the first year of the new rule.
It’s named for Paul Miller, a 21-year-old Scranton native killed by a distracted tractor-trailer driver in 2010 after a head-on crash in Monroe County.
Last year, PennDOT recorded 1,393 work zone crashes in the state, which left 12 people dead and 49 seriously injured.
Since 1970, the agency said, 93 workers have been killed at road construction sites.
Armstrong County currently has several active construction projects, many of which are centered around Judge J. Frank Graff Bridge near Ford City and Kittanning.
Other projects are active or scheduled along Route 422 in Plumcreek, Route 85 near Rural Valley and Route 28 near Boggs Township.