The California Department of Transportation – known as Caltrans – and the California Transportation Foundation (CTF) recently hosted the 36th Annual Workers Memorial to honor the 195 Caltrans workers who have lost their lives while in service to the state since 1921.
[Above photo by Caltrans]
The event also highlighted the death of Mahdi Khorram, a Caltrans construction inspector, who was killed on September 18, 2025, in a work zone incident in Contra Costa County.
During the ceremony, Caltrans used its signature orange cones to create an aisle down the amphitheater staircase leading to a diamond “caution sign” configuration.
Each of the 195 cones in the display bore a black ribbon containing the name of an employee who died on duty, with one black cone in the center of the diamond represented all people killed while working on the state’s highways, including California Highway Patrol officers, private contractors, tow truck drivers, and other emergency responders. A second black cone represented Khorram.
“Every person honored today represents a life lost doing critical work that keeps California moving,” said Toks Omishakin, secretary of the California State Transportation Agency or CalSTA, in a statement.
[Editor’s note: Other state departments of transportation also held similar fallen worker memorial ceremonies, such as the Minnesota Department of Transportation, the South Carolina Department of Transportation, and the Oklahoma Department of Transportation.]
In 2025, Omishakin and other state leaders unveiled the Secretary’s Policy on Road Safety, committing California to a prevention-first, Safe System Approach to eliminate fatal and serious traffic injuries. It sets an interim goal to cut deadly and serious injury crashes by 30 percent by 2035 and reconvenes a cross-sector task force to develop a prioritized action plan.
In 2022, Caltrans instituted a new Director’s Policy on Road Safety, committing to a “Safe System” approach – a strategy that anticipates human mistakes and prevents them from becoming fatal – into every aspect of transportation policy, design, education, enforcement, and post-crash care.
“Caltrans remains committed to honoring its fallen heroes and working to instill a culture of safety in everything we do,” added Dina El-Tawansy, Caltrans director. “Along with his family, friends and colleagues, we mourn the loss of Mahdi Khorram. He will forever be remembered, and his legacy inspires us to meet our road safety goals that will protect all Californians.”
Caltrans noted that it partners with CTF to develop two funds benefitting the families of workers killed on the job. The Fallen Workers Assistance and Memorial Fund provide crucial support for the immediate needs that surviving families may encounter following the loss of a loved one.
“We were honored to participate today in the poignant tribute to our fallen transportation heroes,” said Laurie Berman, chair of CTF’s board. “This annual event spreads life-saving awareness about the importance of work zone safety and highlights CTF’s nearly 40-year mission of providing financial support for families who suffer unexpected loss when their loved ones are killed on the job.”
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, highway construction and maintenance work is one of the most hazardous occupations in the United States. In 2021, more than 9,500 work zone collisions occurred on California highways, resulting in an estimated 2,971 injuries and 73 fatalities. Nationally, drivers and passengers account for 85 percent of people who are killed in work zones.
