HOUSTON -- The half-mile stretch of Houston highway where Tejano star Emilio Navaria III's tour bus crashed has seen far too many crashes and collisions, police and firefighters told KPRC Local 2.

"It averages out to about one a day," assistant Bellaire Police Chief Byron Holloway said.

The problem area is on the West Loop northbound from the overpass at Fournace Place in Bellaire to the exit to the Southwest Freeway.

"There's been people who said we could have a substation up there," Bellaire Fire Chief Darryl Anderson said. "They see us there more than anywhere else."

It is the exact interchange where Emilio's bus smashed into the barrels on March 23.

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Slideshow: Emilio Injured In Bus Crash

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Texas Department of Transportation officials said it is the busiest interchange in the state -- 300,0000 cars travel through it each day.

"We do realize there's a high frequency of accidents there," spokeswoman Raquelle Lewis said. "We have done what we believe we can to minimize those situations."

Crews recently finished millions of dollars in "improvements" there, after an 18-wheeler exploded on the highway.

"We've been making adjustments to ramps, making adjustments to the paint in certain lanes," said Lewis.

The problem is, there is still a problem -- especially during rush hour.

Bellaire police said they responded to 244 wrecks in 2006 and another 244 in 2007. Investigators said there have been 71 wrecks at the interchange so far in 2008.

"What we see is that the runs up there getting back to what they were before construction," said Holloway.

The problems typically start as cars build up to exit onto the Southwest Freeway southbound between 4 and 7 p.m.

Cars stop in the middle of the freeway and some try to cross lanes at the last minute.

Meanwhile, cars are coming over a hill traveling 60 or 70 mph.

"It's too late; you're hitting someone in the rear bumper," said driver John Washburn. "Maybe it's just the way it's designed."

Drivers can be cruising along and all of a sudden they are forced to stop.

TXDOT officials insist there is nothing wrong with the design.

"This interchange meets industry standards, even exceeds them," said Lewis. "There's no design flaw there."

Along with the hundreds of wrecks, near-collisions happen all the time. KPRC Local 2's cameras caught one truck cutting off an ambulance.

"That's alarming," said another driver. "Somebody needs to do something."

TXDOT said it is conducting a new study to see what changes can be made, but it will likely take as long as a decade before those changes become a reality.

At least for now, drivers will have to fend for themselves.