North Carolina Speeding in a Work Zone

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The North Carolina State Legislature is looking at the laws for Speeding in a Work Zone and whether the law should apply when there are no workers.  The current law applies 24 hours a day regardless if there are workers present or not.
Below is the article from the News and Observer on the new proposal.

Drivers would be spared the state's $250 penalty for speeding through highway work zones in cases where no construction workers were present at the time, under legislation moving quickly through the House. The House Transportation Committee approved the bill Wednesday after emotional debate that featured the obituary of a state Department of Transportation worker who was killed March 23 in a Goldsboro work zone crash. "I find it morally wrong to jeopardize their safety as they put their lives in harm's way to make the roads safer for us," said Rep. Dean Arp, a Union County Republican, after handing out copies of the obituary for William Grey Bailey, 35, of Kenly. "The increased penalty for speeding through a work zone is an effective deterrent." But the bill's sponsor, Rep. Sarah Stevens, didn't back down. She said the driver responsible for Bailey's death was impaired and would be punished for more serious offenses. Stevens, a Surry County Republican, said her bill would not change the reduced speed limits posted to make drivers slow down in work zones. "It just says if workers are not present, we should not assess a $250 penalty," she said. "The problem still occurs in my county, where they've got a speed trap set up in this work zone where there's no work going on." Rep. Larry Yarborough, a Person County Republican, agreed. "Half the drivers are not slowing down because they see there's no construction going on and no reason to go slower," Yarborough said.

Arp said DOT reduces the speed limit and posts signs warning of $250 tickets for violators only at a small fraction of work sites. He said the department had 734 active work zones across the state at the first of April, but only 30 where the $250 speeding penalty was applied. Rep. Jay Adams, a Catawba County Republican, said work zone restrictions were also intended to protect drivers from construction-related hazards. The committee approved Stevens' bill on a split vote and sent it for further consideration to a judiciary committee chaired by Stevens.

Also Wednesday, the House Transportation Committee endorsed a bill to eliminate tolls on all state ferries. DOT collects tolls on three of its seven ferry routes. The House and Senate have tussled over ferry tolls for several years. A Senate push to require tolls on all seven routes prevailed a few years ago, but Gov. Bev Perdue blocked its implementation and legislative leaders did not force the issue.(Bruce Siceloff, THE NEWS & OBSERVER, 4/23/15).