Drivers need to share the road to prevent injuries and fatalities.
One of the fastest-growing cities in the United States is San Antonio. It’s already the seventh largest city in the country and often experiences the largest population gain of any city in the country each year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That was the case in 2021 when 13,626 people moved to San Antonio.
People move to San Antonio for many reasons, including its extensive network of bicycle paths and bike lanes. One recent bicycle safety study focusing on the city noted that “San Antonio is one of the premier places for bicycling in the United States,” according to the academic study titled “Analysis of Bicycle-Motor Vehicle Crashes in San Antonio, Texas.”
So, how safe are San Antonio’s streets for pedestrians and cyclists? Sadly, not very safe at all. In recent years, bicycle and pedestrian accidents have increased dramatically in San Antonio. Tragically, it’s part of a growing trend in Texas and across the country. And unfortunately, it doesn’t come as a surprise to the legal team at The Herrera Law Firm, where our San Antonio pedestrian accident attorneys have been fighting for the rights of injured Texans and their families for decades.
Pedestrian accidents are on the rise in San Antonio.
Bexar County, where San Antonio is located, had one of its highest pedestrian accident fatality totals in 2020. Even though there were fewer drivers on the road that year, there were 67 pedestrian deaths in Bexar County in 2020, the second-highest death toll in recent years and the third year in a row that pedestrian fatalities increased in the county, according to statistics compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
How safe is San Antonio for cyclists?
Unfortunately, pedestrians aren’t the only ones at risk on the road in San Antonio, as bicycle accidents have become increasingly common throughout the city. The recent study focusing on bicycle accidents in San Antonio found that the “downtown area experienced the highest crash density” when it comes to bicycle accidents.
Many San Antonio cyclists know this all too well. “All the streets of San Antonio feel unsafe,” said Bike SA board member Katie Nickas in an interview for a recent Governing.com article about bicycle safety in San Antonio. “At no point have I felt safe riding on the streets on my bike here.”
Pedestrian fatalities soar in Texas and nationwide.
San Antonio isn’t the only place where pedestrian accidents have increasingly become a problem. Texas set a record high for pedestrian fatalities in 2021. That year, 824 people were killed in pedestrian accidents across the state, an increase of 15.2 percent compared to 2020, according to the Texas Department of Transportation.
Nationwide, pedestrian fatalities set a 40-year record in 2021. That year, 7,485 pedestrians were killed nationwide, which was 12 percent higher than the year before, according to pedestrian accident statistics compiled by the Governor’s Highway Safety Administration (GHSA).
“This is heartbreaking and unacceptable,” said GHSA Executive Director Jonathan Adkins. “It’s frustrating to see even more lives needlessly taken due to dangerous driving.”
What's driving this trend?
One of the main reasons why bicycle accidents happen in San Antonio is because the city has “incomplete roads” that don’t take into account cyclists and pedestrians, according to the recent Governing.com article.
City officials and residents agreed. In 2017, they voted in favor of a complete redesign of many city streets to make them safer for pedestrians and cyclists. In addition, the plan called for installing more protected bike lanes and wider sidewalks.
Unfortunately, implementing those plans have been put on hold by the Texas Department of Transportation, which opposes reducing traffic lanes in many parts of San Antonio due to its continued anticipated population growth.
Contact The Herrera Law Firm if you or a loved one were hit by a car in San Antonio.
You might think you don’t need legal help if a driver clearly hit you with their car. The at-fault driver might have been speeding, texting while driving, impaired, or breaking another traffic law.
But you would be amazed by how complicated many pedestrian accident claims turn out to be. Sometimes, it’s because the at-fault driver denies doing anything wrong. Other times, it’s the at-fault driver’s insurance company that's the problem.
Whatever the circumstances of your particular situation, we can help you every step of the way. We know what evidence to look for and how to build strong legal cases designed to succeed.
Discover what a San Antonio pedestrian accident lawyer can do for you. Contact us today to schedule a free case evaluation. Our office is located on West Commerce Street in San Antonio, and we handle accident claims throughout Texas. We also work on a contingency fee basis. That means you pay no fees unless we win your case.
