On Friday May 12, 2023, we received the phone call that is every parent’s worst nightmare: our son had been hit by a car. He’s a vibrant, loving 8 year old boy who was making the short walk home from a party at a neighborhood restaurant with his babysitter, a successful UT student who has just completed her freshman year.

Our son and his babysitter were both hit by a car crossing Windsor Road while in a crosswalk with a "walk" signal. They were crossing Windsor going south as the driver was making a left onto Windsor from Mopac highway. The driver was at fault for failure to yield to a pedestrian. We are very grateful that both my son and his babysitter seem like they will be ok physically. The full emotional and mental toll of this incident is unknown right now. 

However the intersection where this occurred, Windsor and Winstead, has long been known to be dangerous. With the addition a few years ago of a city-approved, popular family-oriented restaurant adjacent to busy Mopac at this intersection, the city of Austin and District 10 have an obligation to ensure that this residential area is safe for walkers.

• The left turn onto Windsor from the Mopac highway exit does not even have a protected left turn signal! This means that pedestrians have a "Walk" sign at the same time as drivers exiting the highway can turn left into the crosswalk.
• The crosswalk has NO additional markings despite the fact that it is a high traffic area that bisects a neighborhood.

Austin and District 10 can do better.

We are calling for 2 fast changes to the intersection of Windsor and Winstead (Mopac feeder road) including:

1. Dedicated left turn signals at all stoplights at Windsor and Winstead intersection
2. Abundant, obvious signage at each of the multiple pedestrian crosswalks at this intersection that say to be aware of pedestrians, and to STOP if there are pedestrians in crosswalk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And these additional changes:

 

 

1. Add a crosswalk at Sharon and Windsor
2. Add streetlights above the crosswalks and sidewalks
3. Add speed bumps to Windsor Road between Mopac and Exposition
4. Build a sidewalk on north side of Windsor road
5. Decrease speed limits in the area

Poor city planning in the past has made our city less walkable, but that is no reason to neglect the long-term health and sustainability of our neighborhoods. This is just one of the accidents that has happened at this intersection, and we are so, so lucky it was not worse.

This video shows the green light at the same time as a walk symbol at the crosswalk.