ABILENE, TX- Parents and drivers are requesting installation of traffic lights at the intersection of State highway 1750 and Taylor County Road.
This intersection is constantly congested as it is close to the Wylie East Elementary School and Wylie East Middle School, so when parents are driving their children to school and on the way back, the traffic becomes very unorganized.
Wylie Independent School District parent Michelle King reached out to Wylie ISD Superintendent Joey Light and Taylor County Precinct Four Commissioner Chuck Statler to see what could be done regarding the intersection.
“You’ve got two jurisdictions. You have the Texas Department of Transportation and the state highway. So they’ve got to implement their plan to construct it. If it comes to a right of way issue with the county, we will cooperate 200 percent to make this intersection as safe as possible,” Statler explained.
Because the county road is owned by Taylor County and State Highway 1750 is owned by the State of Texas, traffic lights can’t be installed at the intersection immediately.
On this intersection, there were also multiple fatal car accidents, and Commissioner Statler is encouraging the state to solve this quickly.
“A few years back, Taylor County worked with TxDOT to install a signal light at the intersection of State Highway 707 and County Rd. 114. Since the installation and completion of the lights, there have been no fatalities at this intersection,” Statler explained.
Until a decision is made by TxDOT, Statler says the city will be installing crosswalks and crossing lights near the intersection within the next few weeks.
The city will also monitor speeding on both roads to ensure people are driving safely.
