HOUSTON – A group of University of Houston undergraduate students and their professor have identified what they say have become the 10 most dangerous non-freeway Houston intersections post-lockdown.
- Pease St. & Fannin St. | Downtown Houston 59 accidents
- Bissonnet & Westchester | West University Place 41 accidents
- Main & Montrose | Museum District 39 accidents
- FM 1960 & W. Lake Houston Parkway | Northeast Harris County 39 accidents
- S. Gessner Rd & Westpark Dr | Westchase 39 accidents
- Spencer Rd & Highway 6 | Northwest Harris County 37 accidents
- Highway 6 & Bellaire Blvd | Alief 37 accidents
- Treaschwig Rd & FM 1960 | North Harris County 36 accidents
- Clay Rd. & Barker Cypress | Northwest Harris County 36 accidents
- Highway 6 & Westheimer | West Houston 36 accidents
The students, who did the research on their free time and not as part of a class project, studied the period from March 10, 2021, when Governor Greg Abbott officially reopened Texas, to February 25, 2022.
Using data compiled from the Texas Department of Transportation, they found certain intersections in Harris County became hotspots for crashes in the last year. The number of accidents was higher than in 2018 - 2020, pre-pandemic.
Ashutosh Agrawal, associate professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Houston, who guided the students, believes the increased incidents point to the stress of the pandemic.
“Covid has impacted lives of all Houstonians, and what has happened in terms of stress on the road,” he said.
Accidents at intersections accounted for nearly one-third of the total accidents in Harris County, the study found. And four out of the 10 intersections were close to schools, the report said.
The students hope their work can be used by city, county and state officials, and that drivers will take heed as well.
“They are more alert on the road and more patient on the road and follow traffic guidelines because they are there for their own safety,” said Anique Siddiqui who worked on the project along with William Walker, Alexa Truong, Alex Neagu and Anaga Ajoy.
You can read the full report here: