Residents demanding safety changes to 'dangerous intersection' in Orchard
ORCHARD, Texas (KTRK) -- The demands for changes are growing louder from a group of residents who live in the area of an intersection they say is known as dangerous and sometimes deadly.
Highway 36 runs east to west and connects Wallis to Rosenberg, but along that road is the dangerous intersection known as Orchard.
Residents say the intersection is problematic, claiming that serious accidents plague the area for a variety of reasons.
"Everybody knows when there's an accident here. We know what intersection it is," said resident of Orchard Philip Aguilar.
Drivers traveling along Highway 36 have the right-of-way and should be driving about 55 miles per-hour, but residents in the area say some drive much faster.
Those going north or south on FM 1489 must stop at a stop sign and yield to the traffic on the highway.
Concerned residents say it's a mixture between careless drivers and speeding that ultimately causes wrecks.
"My bestfriend's mom had a wreck here," said Wallis resident Rhonda Valis. "She is still crippled to this day from the accident."
Both Valis and Aguilar say they've raised the safety issue with both TxDOT and Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office, but say there have been zero changes.
They agree the speed limit should be lowered on the highway and stop signs be added.
According to Valis, she claims TxDot provided some numbers about the collisions in that area based on a study they conducted. Their finding revealed a total of 42 collisions at that intersection, and four of those were deadly.
Some residents question those numbers and claim it should be higher, but hope something can be done to help keep all drivers safe.
Eyewitness News reached out to TxDOT for more information about their study, but never heard back.
The Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office is collecting information about the collisions at that intersection and plan on sharing that information when they have it.
"We need help," Aguilar said. "We need something to be done. We need our voices heard."
