HOUSTON – Three areas of Houston seem to be most prone to car vs. bicycle accidents, Channel 2 Investigates has learned.
Reviewing thousands of Texas Department of Transportation accident records from 2013 through November 2015, Channel 2 found a total of 1,420 crashes involving motor vehicles.
Thirty bicycle riders have died since 2013 in Harris County.
Montgomery and Fort Bend counties have also had their shares of similar mishaps, although the numbers are much smaller: 116 car vs. bike crashes in Montgomery County and 122 in Fort Bend County during the same time period.
“For some reason, people get into their cars and they think they can do whatever they want,” Dan Morgan, an outspoken member of Houston’s cycling community said.
Morgan campaigns for recognition and enforcement of Houston’s so-called “safe passage” ordinance which provides no less than three feet of separation drivers must maintain from bicyclists and pedestrians.
“We have no long-term solution,” Morgan said.
But within the city of Houston, people are working toward one.
Bike Houston promotes access to high-quality bike lanes, among other goals. Right now, the group is working with city leaders to formulate a workable plan to make Houston more “bike friendly.”
By the numbers:
HARRIS COUNTY BREAKDOWN OF ACCIDENTS BY POPULAR AREAS:
Upper Kirby / Montrose area: 45 total crashes.
--14 along Montrose Boulevard (3 at the corner of Richmond Avenue and Montrose Boulevard one fatal.)
--8 accidents along Waugh Drive from Montrose area to the Heights, 1 fatal.
Downtown Houston / Midtown: 36 total crashes
--6 along Fannin Street
--Franklin Street
--Bagby Street
--Elgin Street
In the South Park Area from 610 to Almeda-Genoa: 32 total crashes
--6 along Cullen Boulevard from Bellfort to Orem Boulevard
--6 along Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard from Bellfort to Orem, 1 fatal.
Northeast side of town from 45N to the Eastex Freeway: 21 total crashes
--12 along the Airline from 45 North to Aldine Mail Route, 1 fatal.
Northwest Side of town from 290 to 45 North:
--12 along Bammel Road