The signs may say 55 miles per hour, but officers say the message is speeding by motorists.
"Our main purpose is to come out here and make sure that the workers are safe No. 1, and the motoring public is also, coming through the work zones," says Sgt. Adam Clayton of the Durham County Sheriff's Department.
Dennis Speaks, a worker with theDepartment of Transportation, says it can be dangerous to work on the interstates with speeders on the road.
"We have a lot of cars out here and it's not easy," says DOT worker Dennis Speaks. "There's several cars that come up and down this road."
The officers are writing more than speeding tickets. Sometimes it is just the introduction to another violation.
"Any kind of infractions really in the work zone, but mainly speeding through the work zone," Clayton says. "We're looking for tailgating and seat belts also."
For DOT workers, the crackdowns are ways they hope drivers will take the signs seriously.
"It makes a lot of difference. It slows people down, and I wish they could stay out here all the time," Speaks says. "It would be nice. Their presence makes a big difference."
Thursday's crackdown produced about 65 tickets. Sgt. Clayton says some people were caught driving more than 80 miles per hour in the work zones.
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