CHP to Solano-area drivers: Please slow down

The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is asking Solano County-area drivers to not treat Interstate 80 as their own personal racetrack.

On Thursday, the CHP’s Solano area office said patrol officers have responded to a large amount of calls for service since construction projects began on a stretch of Interstate 80 between Red Top Road in Fairfield and Leisure Town Road in Vacaville.

That includes a fatal crash involving an impaired driver who struck and killed a CalTrans worker in early June as she was performing landscape improvements on a stretch of westbound Interstate 80 near Vacaville.

Signs posted along Interstate 80 warn that the speed limit is 55 miles per hour through construction zones — and officers are enforcing it with traffic stops, warnings and citations.

Outside of construction zones, the typical speed limit on Interstate 80 is 65 miles per hour. The speed limit was selected because Interstate 80 is located along urban, suburban and mountainous communities.

In California, drivers face a potential fine of $367 for going 1 to 15 miles over the speed limit. From there, fines can increase to as much as $648 and can be stacked with other penalties based on other factors like a driver not wearing their seat belt or driving while impaired by alcohol, marijuana or other drugs.

The CHP has carried out several maximum enforcement campaigns that led to citations and warnings for speeding drivers, with some arrested after patrol officers observed obvious signs of alcohol or drug impairment.

Public safety officials say motorists should always be “Work Zone” alert, drive safely through construction areas, avoid using cellphones and other devices while driving, turn on headlights at night and based on weather conditions, and allow ample space between their car and ones in front of them.