I-75 through Oakland County is torn up. I-696 is patched and re-patched. M-59 is down to a single lane in places. Michigan's 2026 construction season is full-throttle, and the work zone crash data is climbing with it.
Michigan averages over 6,000 work zone crashes per year, and the trend over the last five years is up. Most are rear-end collisions caused by sudden lane drops, distracted drivers, and impatient passes. The fatalities, though, are usually high-speed crashes into stopped vehicles or workers themselves.
Speed limits in active work zones drop, fines double, and yet enforcement is light. Drivers know it.
A work zone crash often involves three potential at-fault parties: the at-fault driver who failed to slow down, the construction contractor who set up the lane shift, and MDOT (or the county road commission) that approved the traffic control plan.
Most attorneys only sue the at-fault driver. We look at all three. Contractor liability is real when signage was inadequate, lane shifts were sudden, or temporary striping was misleading. MDOT liability is harder but possible when the approved plan was unsafe.
If you're a construction worker hit by a vehicle while working in a Michigan work zone, you have a workers' comp claim against your employer and a third-party negligence claim against the driver who hit you. The third-party case is often the bigger one, but it can be reduced by the comp lien.
We coordinate with workers' comp counsel routinely. Don't sign anything without legal review.
Lane configurations change weekly during construction. The barrels, signs, and striping that were there the day of your crash may be gone by the time anyone investigates. Photograph everything immediately. Get GPS coordinates. Note time stamps.
Subpoena MDOT for the traffic control plan in effect that day. Subpoena the contractor for daily inspection logs. We send these requests within the first two weeks.
If you're injured by a Michigan work zone driver and your employer's health plan covers your treatment, expect a subrogation lien. ERISA plans are aggressive. We negotiate liens down routinely — most clients don't realize how much can be cut.
A $50,000 settlement minus a $20,000 lien is a different recovery than minus a $5,000 lien. The negotiation matters.
Work zone cases are complex and rarely simple driver-vs-driver. We've handled enough to know which contractors are liability-prone and which lane configurations the courts will treat as dangerous. Free consultation.
Free consultation. No fee unless we win. Talk to a real attorney today.
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