SPRINGFIELD - As you take to the highway, be aware: It's not only state troopers watching for speeding motorists.

A contingent of photo-enforcement vans is also out there, ready to catch motorists driving too fast in construction work zones - and they don't care if you are one mile or 10 miles over the speed limit.

The presence of the vans, which have been promoted with highway signs, ad campaigns and accompanied by increased enforcement, is paying off: The number of deaths and accidents in highway work zones has dropped significantly in the past five years, state officials said.

In 2003, 44 people, including five construction workers, died in work zone accidents in Illinois.

Since then, state police have dispersed five photo-enforcement vans to patrol work zones across the Land of Lincoln. The vans have automatically issued 7,441 speeding tickets, said Scott Compton, a spokesman for the Illinois State Police.

During that same five-year period, the number of work zone fatalities has been cut in half - to 21 in 2007, according to state police. Two construction workers died last year; one was killed in both 2005 and 2006.

Data for the first six months of 2008 isn't yet available.

"Obviously, our goal has been to reduce fatalities and reduce crashes in general," Compton said. "We are hopeful that the presence of those photo enforcement vans and squad cars remind drivers to slow down and proceed with caution through construction zones."

While fatalities are down, the drop in work-zone accidents has not been as consistent. In fact, 2006 and 2007 saw more accidents than previous years, though the number of injuries in 2007 dropped below 2,000 - the only year that happened in the five-year period, based on IDOT statistics. Still, overall, injuries - like fatalities - are noticeably down from 2003.

"We're seeing that people are slowing down, but more is always better," Compton added. "We would like people to slow down, and this is just another tool for getting them to do so."

Third summer

This summer marks the third year vans are being stationed at construction zone sites. Three are touring various areas along interstates in and around Rock Island, DuQuoin, Springfield, Champaign and Collinsville. One is monitoring state highway construction zones. Another is reserved for metropolitan Chicago.

While you might be quick-witted or teary-eyed enough to wiggle out of getting a ticket if a state trooper pulls you over, the vans play no favorites.

They are automated to issue a $375 ticket to anyone over the posted speed limit. A second ticket drives the fine up to $1,000 and the risk of a 90-day license suspension.

And there's no leniency when it comes to issuing work zone tickets.

"Speeding is speeding. Even with a regular speeding ticket, there's no grace if you break the law," Compton said.

With the photo vans, images of the driver's face and the front and rear license plates on the vehicle are recorded. If the driver is anyone other than the vehicle owner, the owner is not responsible for the ticket. When the ticket is mailed to the guilty party, the driver's photograph appears with the citation.

The vans are well-marked and include a speed board so drivers know how fast they are going. State statute also requires signs that warn drivers of the automated surveillance, said Mike Claffey, a spokesman for the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Doug Hecox, a spokesman for the Federal Highway Administration, said the agency "suspects" photo-enforcement works in reducing auto accidents. But since Illinois is one of just a few states to adopt the program, the department has yet to thoroughly analyze the results, he said.

But Claffey, like Compton, thinks the numbers speak for themselves in Illinois. He agreed efforts to curb work zone accidents have succeeded since 2003, when the number of highway construction deaths and injuries reached an alarming high.

But that doesn't mean the number of work zone citations issued by state police will decrease.

"We certainly don't want to let our guard down," Claffey said.

Instead, the number of tickets and the money the state makes from each work zone speeding citation has increased each year.

Since 2005, the Illinois Department of Transportation has generated more than $7.4 million from work zone speeding violations, IDOT spokeswoman Paris Ervin said.

"We're not doing it to issue citations or make money. We're doing it to save lives," Claffey said.

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Slowing down

Chart shows the number of accidents, fatalities, injuries and worker deaths in construction work zones in Illinois over the past five years. Data for the first half of 2008 is not yet available.

Year…Crashes…Dead…Injuries…Worker deaths

2003…6,982…44…2,867…5

2004…6,008…38…2,303…2

2005…6,655…25…2,087…1

2006…8,329…29…2,268…1

2007…7,637…21…1,977…2

SOURCE: Illinois Department of Transportation