SAN ANTONIO- There have been at least one dozen car accidents down two short stretches of road on the Northeast Side within the past year. This has worried a woman, who has witnessed several of the accidents, about the danger the winding roads pose. That area is O’Connor Road from I-35 to where it intersects with Crosswinds Way and Crosswinds Way between I-35 and Wurzbach Parkway.
The latest accident happened this morning when two cars collided.
It's hard to say exactly what's causing these accidents so I started my investigation with finding out if anything has changed in the area in the past year or so.
“Just right up the hill, a lot of people have started taking this road here, Crosswinds Way to get to I-35 because that area is so congested,” explained Mary Benoche who works in the area.
According to Mary in the past year it has become a sort of short cut for drivers trying to avoid traffic congestion during rush hour and those who are trying to find a quick route to I-35. But, Mary said there is one major problem.
“I have witnessed three accidents and I have come upon the aftermath of a fourth accident”.
She doesn't think the area was meant for so many cars to use during rush hour especially a curved part of the road on Crosswinds. It’s where Mary said an accident about a month ago resulted in a car bursting into flames.
“The light polls here, two of them are missing. They have been hit by vehicles. One vehicle actually, the light poll fell on it and it burst into flames”.
With a list of accidents I contacted the City of San Antonio Public Works Department to see if anything can be done. They have agreed to conduct a traffic study in the area to see if the stretch along O’Connor Road from I-35 to where it intersects with Crosswinds Way and Crosswinds Way between I-35 and Wurzbach Parkway need to be re-worked to ease traffic flow and minimize car accidents.
If you suspect a potentially dangerous road in your neighborhood, there is a list of things to look for before the city will go out and investigate. For more information go to http://www.sanantonio.gov/publicworks/aboutus.aspx, and click on Residential Services, and then on Traffic Management.
