AUSTIN, Texas — If you are driving on Interstate Highway 35, you may notice some new signs on the highway.
The Texas Department of Transportation is trying to stop people from crossing the highway due to a recent increase in deaths.
Last year, there were four more deadly crashes involving pedestrians on I-35 in Austin than the year before. In 2018, there were seven fatal crashes, while there were three in 2017.
TxDOT is adding 26 different signs to warn people not to cross.
They are on the side of the highway and painted on barriers near 51st Street.
It is part of the "Stay Alive, Don't Cross I-35” initiative.
“Crossing a busy interstate that has a posted speed of 60 to 70 mph is not just dangerous, it’s deadly,” said Terry McCoy, a TxDOT Austin district engineer. “By painting the no-crossing symbol directly on the barrier, we hope to alert pedestrians before they make the fatal decision to step onto the highway.”
McCoy adds that it is doing “everything that's practical, everything that's possible” to save a life.
The agency said 60 percent of deaths on I-35 in Austin involve a pedestrian.
TxDOT said it has no plans right now to build more pedestrian bridges over the interstate in Austin.
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