According to the Texas Department of Transportation, over the past three months, from May 10 to Aug. 10, 2020, there have been 30 crashes involving 63 vehicles and 79 people on the main roadways of Four Points, mostly RM 620 and RM 2222. Red oval means injury accident; red circle with star means injury accident with a citation issued; green means an accident with no injuries, green circle with star means no injury accident but citation given; blue means deadly accident; blue with star means deadly accident with citation.
By LESLEE BASSMAN, Four Points News
Four Points resident Becky Dewan said this summer has proven to be dangerous for drivers and visitors to the Low Water Crossing area, off of RM 620 near Mansfield Dam.
“In fact, this last month, we’ve had just more crash activity there than usual,” Dewan said. She has homes in both Montview Harbor and Hidden Valley.
Her neighbor, Tom Sapio, said Hidden Valley residents have been texting each other about the crashes, sharing the news on their phones when a vehicle hit a guardrail and landed in a wooded area.
“The accidents are pretty bad,” Sapio said. “There was a rollover and serious injuries. And this was in the last probably two weeks. It just seems like there’s accidents constantly.”
According to the Texas Department of Transportation, as of Aug. 11, 30 vehicular accidents involving 63 vehicles and 79 persons occurred in the mapped section of Four Points (see inset showing highlighted portion researched) May 10-Aug. 10, 2020. That area includes Low Water Crossing Road’s intersection with RM 620.
The Four Points News took this task on after some residents reported that the area’s main thoroughfares have seen a greater number of accidents recently despite coronavirus measures pushing traffic volumes down.
However, the department’s crash website shows this summer’s collisions to be fewer — almost by half — than the prior two years. In 2019, the inset section had 61 crashes involving 127 vehicles and 165 persons and in 2018, the inset section had 60 crashes involving 139 vehicles and 166 persons.
But the research is telling on other points.
For instance, the intersection of Sitio Del Rio and RM 2222 stands out for its four injury accidents within the last three months, including two collisions that ended up with driver citations. Two additional collisions occurred a block away on RM 2222 at River Place Boulevard, with one accident resulting in injuries. Four out of the six total accidents included citations issued by patrol officers and only two out of the seven total reported accidents on RM 2222 during this time period didn’t involve injuries. Notes from the incidents showed construction was occurring in the area.
Also, Four Points had one death on RM 620 at North Quinlan Park Road this summer.
Sapio and Dewan’s intersection of Low Water Crossing and RM 620 has shown similar types of accidents this summer as compared to the previous two summers (see sidebar).
Please note TxDOT does not provide the date of collisions since that information may offer the reader insight into the identity of those involved in the crash and without their permission.
One crash that occurred on RM 620 at 5:32 p.m. on a Wednesday without injury lacked coordinates displayed on the map provided by the crash report website. Notes from that accident show the driver’s attention diverted from the roadway as a contributing factor.
The following is TxDOT information relevant to the remaining 29 accidents:
1. RM 620 at Low Water Crossing Road
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 1:50 p.m. on a Thursday, with two possible injuries.
2. RM 620 at Low Water Crossing Road
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 1:16 p.m. on a Wednesday, resulting in two injuries and one non injury. Notes show that failure to yield at a right or way or stop sign was a contributing factor and a citation was given for the same. One person was ejected from a vehicle.
3. RM 620
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 1:15 p.m. on a Tuesday, with no injuries. Notes show a vehicle lost control and skidded in the rain.
4. RM 620
A collision involving one vehicle occurred at 10:40 p.m. on a Saturday. Notes show the vehicle swerved or veered to avoid something in the road, hitting a fixed object. No injuries.
5. RM 620 at Marshall Ford Road
A collision involving three vehicles occurred at 2:39 p.m. on a Wednesday. Notes show a contributing factor was failure to control speed resulting in a rear-end collision. No injuries occurred.
6. Quinlan Crossing
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 8:07 p.m. on a Friday, with no injuries. Notes show contributing factors included failure to yield right of way and a distraction in a vehicle.
7. RM 620 near North Quinlan Park Road
A collision involving one vehicle occurred at 1:15 p.m. on a Sunday, with no injuries. The vehicle hit a median. Notes show attention diverted from driving as a factor.
8. RM 620 at North Quinlan Park Road
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 1 p.m. on a Wednesday, with no injuries. Notes show failure to control speed as a contributing factor.
9. RM 620 near North Quinlan Park Road
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 8:19 p.m. on a Wednesday, killing one and injuring four others. Notes show contributing factors included passing on the wrong side, failure to control speed and swerving or veering, without a reason specified.
10. RM 620
A collision involving three vehicles occurred at 1:20 p.m. on a Thursday, resulting in no injuries. Notes show contributing factors included failure to control speed and slowing or stopping for traffic.
11. RM 620 at Comanche Trail
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 3:30 p.m. on a Monday, with no injuries.
12. RM 620 at Steiner Ranch Boulevard
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 10:35 p.m. on a Saturday, resulting in five possible injuries out of seven people involved in the accident. Notes show contributing factors included driver inattention and failure to control speed.
13. RM 620 at RM 2222
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 5:30 p.m. on a Tuesday, with no injuries.
14. RM 620 at RM 2222
A collision involving three vehicles occurred at 4:47 p.m. on a Friday, with no injuries. A citation was issued to a 16-year-old driver for failure to yield into a private drive.
15. RM 620 near Four Points Drive
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 1:43 p.m. on a Tuesday, with no injuries.
16. RM 620 at Four Points Drive
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 6:16 p.m. on a Tuesday, with no injuries. Notes show failure to yield right of way while turning left as a contributing factor.
17. RM 620 near Zimmerman Lane
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 1:47 p.m. on a Thursday, with no injuries. A citation was issued for failure to yield right of way.
18. RM 620 near Rock Harbour Drive
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 11:28 a.m. on a Thursday, resulting in no injuries. Notes show factors included swerving or veering to avoid a vehicle stopped or moving slowly in traffic.
19. RM 620 near Concordia University Drive
A collision involving three vehicles occurred at 3:10 p.m. on a Saturday, resulting in three possible injuries (out of three persons involved). A citation was issued for failing to maintain assured and clear distance.
20. RM 620 near Concordia University Drive
A collision involving one vehicle occurred at 10:34 p.m. on a Sunday, with no injuries. The vehicle hit a fixed object.
21. RM 2222 near River Place Boulevard
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 10:47 a.m. on a Wednesday, with no injuries. Notes show other contributing factors included construction and a vehicle following too closely.
22. RM 2222 at River Place Boulevard
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 5:29 a.m. on a Friday, with no injuries. One vehicle was charged with running a red light and one vehicle was cited for its driver not having a driver’s license. Construction was also listed as another factor.
23. RM 2222 at River Place Boulevard
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 1:20 a.m. on a Tuesday, with two possible injuries. One driver was charged with driving while intoxicated.
24. RM 2222 at Sitio Del Rio Boulevard
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 8:07 p.m. on a Wednesday, resulting in one injury and three non-injuries. Notes show that a factor included slowing or stopping for officer, flagman or traffic control.
25. RM 2222 at Sitio Del Rio Boulevard
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 6:53 p.m. on a Thursday, resulting in one injury and one non-injury. A driver was charged with running a red light and construction was listed as a factor.
26. RM 2222 at Sitio Del Rio Boulevard
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 7:29 p.m. on a Thursday, resulting in two injuries and one non-injury. Notes show disregard for a stop sign or light and construction as contributing factors.
27. RM 2222 at Sitio Del Rio Boulevard
A collision involving four vehicles occurred at 4:19 p.m. on a Thursday, resulting in one injury and three non-injuries. A driver was charged with failure to maintain an assured and clear distance.
28. Wilson Parke Avenue
A collision involving one vehicle occurred at 8:45 p.m. on a Friday, resulting in a possible injury. The vehicle hit a tree. Notes show that a wild animal in the road and distraction in the vehicle were contributing factors.
29. Bullick Hollow Road near Oasis Bluff Drive
A collision involving two vehicles occurred at 3:59 p.m. on a Saturday, with no injuries. One driver was charged with failure to control the speed of the vehicle. Notes show a sideswipe occurred and contributing factors included a vehicle passing or attempting to pass another vehicle on the left.