Moving ahead with intersection improvements

With 30 percent of all traffic crashes in Austin occurring at intersections, it’s no wonder the city has a strong focus on making safety enhancements to intersections. Of course, as the Transportation Department points out, every intersection is different, so there’s no one-size-fits-all solution for intersection safety. First, ATD staffers “analyze crash data from each intersection before designing the project. Then, planners and engineers select safety measures from a toolkit of potential improvements that will have the greatest impact.” Crossing islands, changes to driveway access and new turn lanes are some of the enhancements that are shown to be highly effective in reducing crashes. These kinds of changes make a measurable difference: “At intersections where the city has made improvements, the annual number of crashes resulting in serious injuries or death has fallen 31 percent,” according to ATD.