BURNSVILLE  (AP) - State transportation officials are renewing their plea for drivers to stay alert in construction zones following a crash that killed two workers on Interstate 35 in Burnsville.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation notes there were nearly 2,000 crashes in work zones last year. None have been fatal since 2008 until Thursday when two employees of Egan Co. installing an MnPASS lane on the freeway were struck and killed by an out-of-control sports car.

There are more than 80 state highway projects under way in the Twin Cities metro area alone this year. DOT spokesman Kevin Gutknecht says construction workers "have a right to go home to their families safe and sound."

The State Patrol identified the victims of Thursday's accident as 47-year-old Craig Carlson of Ramsey and 44-year-old Ronald Rajkowski of St. Joseph.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

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