Bexar County hires engineering firm to identify most dangerous roads

SAN ANTONIO – Ask a county resident which road he considers dangerous, and he will probably give you a list.

Bexar County Commissioners hired WSP USA Inc., an engineering consulting firm, to conduct a comprehensive study of roadway hot spots for fatalities and serious injuries in unincorporated Bexar County.

Bexar County Public Works Director Art Reinhart said a comprehensive study like this has never been done countywide.

“One of the things about Bexar County, you know, is that it’s rapidly urbanizing. So we want to be able to use this data to help us make better decisions about our roads in rural areas that haven’t seen a lot of activity as they’ve been developed,” he said.

The study will last approximately 18 months. It will review crash reports from the Texas Department of Transportation and law enforcement agencies and engage the public. It will also consider an action plan for further development.

Minor changes along the way may also be made along the way if they are easy to fix. However, the more expensive road reconstruction would likely require federal funding.

The study was paid for by a U.S. Department of Transportation Safe Streets for All grant. The first portion of the grant is $300,000, and commissioners added another $100,000. Once the study is completed, the county will have to apply for a second portion of the grant, known as an Implementation Fund Grant, to make any major corrections.

However, many county elected officials already know the roads that need improvement, and some of them may be considered dangerous. KSAT addressed all commissioners.

Here’s a list of roads “determined by voters as dangerous,” provided by 3rd District Commissioner Grant Moody’s office:

• FM 3351

• Old Fred

• Kyle Seal Pkwy*

• Specht Road

• Borgfeld

• TPC Pkwy and Bulverde area

• Blanco Road near the northern end of the site and near the West Avenue site.

• Burn Stage Road

• FM 1560 in the Helotes area

• Canyon Golf between Wilderness Oak and Stone Oak Pkwy due to construction

• 4th Precinct Commissioner Tommy Calvert mentioned some of them during an interview with him.

• Aztec Lane in Universal City has a low water crossing.

He points out the numerous railroad crossings in the area that impede traffic and emergency traffic near Congress Boulevard and Gibbs Sproul Road.

He points to construction along I-35 and I-10 that causes drainage problems during heavy rainfall.

Abbott Road is seeing huge residential growth and needs better traffic control.

District 1 and 2 Commissioners Rebekah Clay-Flores and Justin Rodriguez did not respond to our request for a list of roads that are of concern to constituents.

Calvert’s area is seeing a boom in residential developments and homes, and he is concerned that the county is already behind in traffic safety planning.

“There are no street lights in all of unincorporated Bexar County because there are 500,000 people in unincorporated Bexar County,” he said. “The court has to act very quickly because the government is typically about five years behind the private sector in terms of ideas.”

KSAT asked viewers on Facebook which Bexar County roads they considered dangerous. The answers can be seen here.