Steve Curtis, Luck Stone’s transportation coordinator said, “At Luck Stone, we strive daily to keep a safe environment in and around our crushed stone operations; therefore making education about sharing safely the road with trucks a top priority.” Curtis added, “We were thrilled to be invited yet again by Massaponax High School officials to conduct this hands-on learning truck safety experience and look forward to implementing future truck safety events!”

David S. Ekern, VDOT Commissioner, said, “It is so important that we reach out to these young drivers and share the lesson of work zone safety awareness – not just during April in observance of National Work Zone Awareness Week, but year-round.”

Luck Stone and VDOT officials were on-site teaching approximately 400 students how to safely share the road with truck drivers and highway workers. The event kicked off with a video session, which highlighted driver-do’s and don’t’s when approaching a work zone area and sharing the road with large commercial vehicles. Following the session, students divided into groups, congregated outside for the main truck safety demonstration with the Luck Stone team. During the demonstration students walked around and got inside the trucks that were parked amongst vehicles to demonstrate how easy it is for cars to get into a blind spot. The final stop at the event was carried out by a representative from the Spotsylvania Sherriff’s Office who asked students to walk on a straight line while wearing “drunk” goggles, which are designed to simulate the vision of an impaired person.

Luck Stone’s Truck Safety event afforded many students the opportunity to learn how to safely share the road with truck drivers and highway workers by making students more aware of work zones and less intimated of trucks by explaining the truck’s structure and how that structure compares to vehicles in terms of its size, weight, limits, braking capabilities, etc…

About Luck Stone Corporation:

Luck Stone Corporation is one of the largest private, family-owned and operated aggregates supplier in the U.S. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, Luck Stone is the 9th largest producer of crushed stone in the nation. It operates 17 crushed stone plants in Virginia and North Carolina, 2 sand and gravel operations, 6 architectural stone centers and 2 granite fabrication facilities. The company’s real estate arm, Luck Properties, strives to develop real estate that is community- and environmentally-friendly. Luck Stone also owns Lee Tennis/HAR-TRU®, the world’s most popular type of clay tennis court and a leading supplier of court accessories. Luck Stone is committed to environmental stewardship and community involvement and has been recognized nationally for its conservation and community relations programs.

About VDOT:

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is responsible for building, maintaining and operating the state’s roads, bridges and tunnels. And, through the commonwealth transportation board it provides funding for airports, seaports, rail and public transportation. Virginia has the third-largest state-maintained highway system in the country, just behind North Carolina and Texas. Since 2002, through efficiency efforts, outsourcing and by shrinking in size, VDOT has achieved annual cost reductions of more than a quarter billion dollars. As of Feb. 28, 2007, VDOT employed 8,730 people, compared to 10,380 at the close of Fiscal Year 2001. That’s the lowest level since 1965. The agency has reduced its workforce by 1,650 positions, resulting in more than $81 million in savings salary and benefit. During the same period, 2,894 miles of road were added to the state system.