Texas A&M, City Of College Station Encourage Safe Crossing At University Drive Intersections

Enforcement of safe crossing at busy intersections of University Drive next to the Texas A&M University campus is expected to begin soon, with both university and city officials encouraging pedestrians to only cross at crosswalks.

About 18,000 pedestrians use the University Drive corridor every day, according to Tim Lomax, regents fellow at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute. TTI, Texas A&M Transportation Services and the city of College Station are reminding pedestrians diagonal crossing at these intersections is prohibited and to use only the designated crosswalks. Enforcement by College Station and university police is expected in the coming weeks.

The city has already installed signs along University Drive alerting students, faculty, staff and visitors to campus to only cross at crosswalks. Signs also alert drivers that there is no right turn on red at these intersections. To further promote the message of safe crossing, Transportation Services recently added sidewalk clings that remind pedestrians where they should cross.

Lomax said the busy intersection at South College Avenue and Bizzell Street adjacent to the Zachry Engineering Education Complex and the Emerging Technologies Building is where the city and university see the most problematic pedestrian behavior, including diagonal crossing.

Lomax said the roughly 45 seconds pedestrians have to cross is enough time to briskly walk from one corner of the intersection to the opposite in the proper L-shaped maneuver.

Failure to follow proper crossing procedures could result in fines. Enforcement will occur from Boyett Street to Polo Road.