Safety has a new look at the Idaho Transportation Department. Thursday morning employees across the state traded in their orange vests for high-visibility yellow vests.
The vests come as part of an effort across the department to focus on employee safety.
“I can’t emphasize just how significant this change is as far as prioritizing the safety of our employees,” said ITD Chief Operations Officer Travis McGrath.
Watch this video of the shift to yellow.
The new vests were designed and developed by a team of employee representing different disciplines from across the state.
The most notable change to the vests is the yellow color to help drivers recognize highway workers among the orange traffic control devices. The vests also have a retro-reflective X on the back to signify to motorists the worker’s back is turned. Employee feedback during design also helped with some functional aspects like snap buttons, pockets big enough for a tablet, a rear storage pocket, and a strap for radio microphones.
“I’ve been with ITD for a long time, and this is by far the biggest change I’ve seen in regard to our safety. I’m so glad we’re making this commitment to our employees,” said ITD Chief Deputy Scott Stokes.