Students at Ricardo Independent School District headed back to school Thursday morning, but in order to get there, some parents had to cross an intersection that many called dangerous.
Norma De La Garza is Stone’s grandmother. Stone is a five-year-old who’s starting kinder at Ricardo ISD this school year. But when she's taking her grandson to school, she notices something on the drive.
“I look through the rearview mirror and I saw his little face and it was concerned. I noticed that his little hands were holding onto the side of his car seat. That let me know that he was nervous and he was scared,” De La Garza said.
De La Garza said the ongoing construction on the Highway 77 and FM 1118 intersection has her and her grandson worried for their safety. But they aren’t the only ones scared, which is why Kleberg county officials worked with TXDOT to make the area more safe just in time for school. One change is the speed limit lowering to 45 and 35 in a school zone. But even with the speed limit change, De La Garza said people still don’t follow the speed limit. Kleberg County has doubled fines in that stretch of road for locals caught speeding. De La Garza also said she would like to see more state troopers in the mornings and after school to put more pressure on locals to slow down. But she doesn’t just rely on local officials to make her and her grandson's drive feel more safe. She and Stone also do their part.
“What we both do is he rolls down his window down and then he lets me know whether there’s cars coming. We double-check each other,” De La Garza said.
When driving down Highway 77, a small pile of traffic might build up heading North. This is because TXDOT was working on opening up a left turn lane on 77 from FM 1118 to westbound Wagner Road.
There was no turn lane during earlier construction, so drivers would have to put their blinkers on very early to signal drivers behind them. Many residents said this was dangerous and risky, especially with children in the vehicle.
“If everyone does their part right and follows the speed limit and is careful, hopefully we can clear some of those problems,” De La Garza said.
TXDOT said message boards, rumble strips, and lighting on stop signs and in the area will stay up to keep students and residents safe until construction moves further down.
Local officials will hold another meeting in a few weeks, once everyone has adjusted to the school schedule, to discuss what is working and what is not.
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