TxDOT hopes plastic barriers along Houston highways dissuade pedestrians

HOUSTON — It is a busy week for the Texas Division of Transportation because it will get ready to close down the 59/610 connector for 2 years, however there’s one other multi-million greenback challenge happening close to the identical space and it is already stretching for miles.

They’re plastic limitations which are put in on prime of the present concrete divider wall.

Why? They’re in place to dissuade pedestrians from making an attempt to cross the freeway.

“What we’ve seen … they’re people crossing the freeway … they’re taking an opportunity,” TxDot Houston District Public Data Officer Danny Perez stated.

TxDot hopes the 2-foot by 10-foot limitations that add to the peak of the center wall will stop them from making an attempt to do this.

“It prevents them from making an attempt to recover from. They’ll see it is increased than the conventional barrier peak,” Perez stated.

To this point, they have been put in alongside 59 and shortly will line the North Freeway, too.

“It might be they don’t need to go to a safer location to cross below the freeway. They assume it is perhaps faster simply to cross at that time … they’re trying. If any person is touring at a excessive price of velocity, it’s not going to finish nicely,” Perez stated.

How massive of an issue is it? In keeping with knowledge from TxDot between 2016 and 2022, there have been a complete of eight auto-pedestrian fatalities alongside 59 and 23 deaths alongside 45. And there have been additionally over 20 “suspected severe accidents” between the 2 highways, based on the information.

As not too long ago as final week, a pedestrian was killed making an attempt to cross 45 at Parker Street.

“We need to convey these numbers down. We need to get to a time the place we now have zero fatalities. And that is only a device we’re utilizing to maintain people from getting onto the freeways,” Perez stated.

To this point, TxDOT has put in six miles of the limitations and when the challenge is completed there will probably be about 15 whole miles.

Right here is the place will probably be:

• 59 between Westpark and simply south of Beltway 8
• 45 from Crosstimbers to Aldine Bender

The hope is that the partitions will cease folks from pondering they’ll dodge or outrun a automobile.

“Crossing the freeway isn’t an choice,” Perez stated.

An added hope is that the limitations will assist hold drivers targeted on their very own facet of the street. They’ll primarily be put in in a single day for security and the challenge is estimated to complete in early August.