Dallas-Fort Worth Roads Will Be Safer When This Happens

Dallas Has Almost 3rd Worst Traffic in the Country.

We all know how dangerous and frustrating driving on Dallas-Fort Worth roads can be.

And if you think Dallas is the worst city to drive in, you’re close. It was recently ranked almost tied for the #3 spot on the list for cities with the worst traffic in the United States. Only Los Angeles and New York City, the top two most densely populated cities and famous for their bumper-to-bumper gridlock, have more traffic jams. Remember the opening to the movie La La Land when people danced on their stopped cars?

The study analyzed 108,000 “hotspots” in American cities to identify where they are and why they happen. They represent problem areas that cause congestion and crashes.

The researchers found 6,720 traffic hot spots in Dallas. The worst area was on Interstate 20 West from south of downtown to Collins in Arlington. Improving these areas would make our lives better and reduce the enormous number of car wrecks we have – over 80,000 a year in Dallas and Tarrant Counties each year.

Traffic congestion mean more time, more money, and more accidents

Anybody who drives in North Texas is aware of the wasted time and heightened frustrations of our traffic problems. Often our cars are inching forward so slowly it would be faster if you just got out and walked.

And do you know how much money poorly designed and overused roads costs you? Hotspots will cost Dallas drivers a shocking $28 billion and U.S. drivers a staggering $2.2 trillion in lost productivity, fuel and emissions in the U.S in the next decade.

As an auto accident attorney, I witness the often horrendous personal losses people experience after they are in a car or truck wreck. I see how traffic congestion causes car accidents, including at these most dangerous intersections in DFW.

Traffic accident rates spike during rush hours when drivers pour onto the roads anxious to get to and from work. A combination of speeding, distractions, texting and impatience substantially increase collision risks during those peak hours. In addition these traffic hotspots have increased deadly road rage episodes as drivers grow increasingly aggressive and angry at the stalled traffic.

I can envision the enormous benefits of pumping that $2.2 trillion back into building safer, more efficient roads and increasing public transportation options. Not taking action seems penny wise and dollar foolish.

But there is some relief in sight

The good news is that relief is just up the road. A number of road projects are in the works in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

The Texas Department of Transportation just announced that it plans to widen U.S. Highway 67 in southern Dallas County which will ease some of the bottle-necking that is common in that area. I was just hired yesterday to represent a woman who was seriously injured in a crash there when bumper-to-bumper traffic on her morning commute suddenly came to a halt and she was rear ended by a truck at a high rate of speed.

Loop 820 reconstruction is expected to create better traffic flow on one of Fort Worth’s major highways.

Let’s hope Dallas gets off the list and the safety of all drivers here in North Texas can be improved.

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