Houston approves costly crosswalk upgrades for student safety. Critics say there are better options

After a high school student was hit by an SUV near Lamar High Schoo in Augustl, Houston mayor John Whitmire has ordered crosswalk upgrades at the intersection of Eastside and Westheimer.

The solution? A High-Intensity Activated Crosswalk installed by Houston Public Works that will allow students to press a button to activate a crossing light, which will cost between $400,000-$600,000.

“HISD’s top priority is the safety and security of all students in and around campus areas,” Houston ISD told the Houston Chronicle. “The District continues to work closely with our law enforcement partners and the City of Houston to ensure the safety of our students.”

However, local activists say this isn’t the best solution, and might not even be the most cost-effective.

“We love hearing Council Member Mary Nan Huffman and Mayor Whitmire talk about street safety and traffic because it’s super important,” Robin Holzer, the executive director of LINK Houston, said to Houston Public Media. “However, the mayor’s current policies take most of the affordable solutions off the table right now. So I heard him say we should spend half a million dollars to add a particular kind of traffic signal at this intersection … that’s the most expensive, partly effective way to do this.”

Holzer instead said that more efficient, cheaper options could include reducing the width of traffic lanes from 12 to 10 feet, to discourage speeding. A 2023 study by John Hopkins University found that implementing this can encourage more responsible driving on city streets.

“Right-sizing travel lanes is a tactic. Hardening the double yellow line so drivers don’t drift across it is a tactic,” Holzer said. “Adding a splitter island or a pedestrian refuge so that a person walking can cross the first two lanes safely and then tackle the next two lanes safely is a tactic. … There’s lots of good tactics.”