High-crash road changes complete
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A project to improve safety in a high-crash stretch of a Southeast Austin road is now complete.
Why it matters: From May 2018 through April 2023, there was, on average, a crash on Bluff Springs Road between William Cannon and the 8300 block of Bluff Springs every eight days.
- Those crashes led to three deaths, serious injuries to eight people and other injuries to 51 others.
What happened: The city reconfigured what was a four-lane road into one with just one travel lane in each direction, plus protected bike lanes and a center turning lane.
Follow the money: Funding for the $2.35 million project comes from the 2018 and 2020 Mobility Bonds and the federally funded 2020 Highway Safety Improvement Program.
The bottom line: The project, which includes new pedestrian crossings and upgrades to traffic lighting, is meant to improve access to schools, bus service, businesses, parks, churches and corner stores.