Speeding and an unsafe lane change contributed to the horrific crash on Interstate 695 last year that killed six highway workers, the National Transportation Safety Board said in its final report on the incident.

In March 2023, two cars — both traveling in excess of 120 mph — collided on the inner loop of I-695, the Baltimore Beltway, near Interstate 70.

The NTSB said the accident occurred when a 2017 Acura TLX moved from the right lane, across the two middle lanes and toward the left lane when it struck a 2017 Volkswagen Jetta.

The collision caused the Acura driver to lose control of her vehicle, which entered a work zone through a roughly 150-foot opening in the concrete barriers designed to isolate the workers from the busy highway. The vehicle struck and killed six workers, making it one of the deadliest crashes since 1980.

Federal officials concluded their yearlong investigation on Wednesday.

“We determined that the probable cause of the Woodlawn, Maryland, crash between a passenger vehicle and highway workers in a work zone was the excessive speed of two vehicles and unsafe lane change by the Acura driver, resulting in a collision with the Volkswagen and subsequent loss of control, entry into the work zone, rollover, and collision with the workers,” NTSB investigators wrote.

The six workers killed were Rolando Ruiz, 46, of Laurel; Carlos Orlando Villatoro Escobar, 43, of Frederick; Jose Armando Escobar, 52, of Frederick; Mahlon Simmons III, 30, of Union Bridge; Mahlon Simmons II, 52, of Union Bridge; and Sybil Lee DiMaggio, 46, of Glen Burnie.

Family members of DiMaggio filed a lawsuit this month against the contractor, alleging that it “failed on every level to ensure a safe construction zone for those working on the project.” They have cited the lack of a protection vehicle in the gap between the concrete barriers.

Both drivers — Lisa Adrienne Lea, 54, of Randallstown, and Melachi Duane Darnell Brown, 21, of Windsor Mill — were subsequently charged in the crash. Lea was driving the Acura, Brown the VW Jetta.

Brown pleaded guilty to six counts of negligent vehicular manslaughter and was sentenced in March to 1½ years in the Baltimore County Detention Center. A judge ruled in June that Brown could serve the remainder of his sentence on home detention.

Lea is awaiting trial in Baltimore County Circuit Court on six counts of negligent vehicular manslaughter and related offenses. She’s due in court on April 28, 2025.

Neither driver in the crash had any previous history of accidents or traffic violations in the last five years.

After the crash, state officials began closing lanes next to the median during construction hours, blocking access areas with a protection vehicle and reducing the the speed limit during construction hours.

State officials and contractors have conducted daily safety assessments. The district office quality assurance inspectors visited the site once per week, on average, and the project superintendent inspected the site daily.

The project superintendent and crew have all received Occupational Safety and Health Administration 10-hour safety and health training.

Baltimore Banner reporter Dylan Segelbaum contributed to this report.