Austin’s roads were witness to a series of devastating events recently: two pedestrians were fatally struck and a total of five individuals lost their lives across four separate collisions in just a span from Friday night to Monday morning. According to FOX 7 Austin, one incident occurred early Sunday morning when a person was hit while crossing East Riverside Drive at the intersection with Tinnin Ford Road and Burton Drive, another pedestrian fatality took place near SH-71 and US-183 early Monday.
Captain Christa Stedman of Austin-Travis County EMS expressed concerns over the frequency of these incidents, telling FOX 7 Austin, “Certainly in recent memory, this is a higher number than we have seen,” further stressing the importance of vigilance for both motorists and pedestrians particularly in such hazardous conditions, wet weather conditions might have contributed to the increased risk leading to the unfortunate events of this weekend as it may have affected road traction and visibility, contributing to the accidents.
In response to these tragic occurrences and ongoing dangers, residents have raised concerns about pedestrian infrastructure. Southeast Austin resident Michael Ross told FOX 7 Austin, “It worries me a lot. I almost got hit it on the sidewalk.” Despite efforts to enhance pedestrian safety – such as improved signals and larger sidewalks in known dangerous areas for foot traffic – collisions persist…