CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The state secretary of transportation calls increasing reports of Division of Highways crew workers being harassed on the Mountain State’s roads as they work to repair them “disturbing.”
“You can criticize me. You can criticize our district managers, but our DOH employees who work hard and are professional, they don’t deserve to be harassed, accosted, cursed and the like,” Paul Mattox said on Friday’s MetroNews “Talkline.”
In recent weeks, he said that’s what’s been happening.
There have been numerous reports of roadside confrontations. “We’ve had examples all over the state, particularly it seems like down in the southern part of West Virginia,” Mattox reported.
In one case, Mattox said a motorcycle rider showed a gun while threatening workers. A man was recently arrested for allegedly pledging to blow up a DOH district office while, in Preston County, DOH workers had to duck flying coins.
“Our crews were out doing some patching work, working on the roads, and a vehicle comes by and they toss a handful of coins at the crew and shout something about, ‘Here’s for your funding shortage,’ or something like that,” Mattox said.
He suggested other avenues for road complaints, whether that be through a formal citizens request for assistance, contacts in district offices or on social media.
More than $300 million, a record for the DOH according to Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, has been authorized for paving and road repairs this year in West Virginia. Usually, the annual paving and repair budget is between $200 million and $225 million.
It’s been a tough year for road work, though, Mattox said.
“North central West Virginia, the Northern Panhandle and the Charleston areas, in particular, we have some road problems. We know about them and we’re working very hard, putting additional resources into those areas to take care of those road needs,” he said.
Because of repeat storms up until mid-July that caused all kinds of road problems, Mattox said crews are only now getting into a patching pattern. For that reason, he said the hope is to extend asphalt season farther into the Fall.