Riders, listen up—TxDOT dropped a hammer with their “Be?Safe. Drive?Smart.” push, part of the bigger Drive?Like?a?Texan campaign. It’s a hard look at the ugly truth: 914 bikers and walkers died last year across Texas, with pedestrian deaths up 22% and cyclist fatalities skyrocketing 58% since 2019.
They’ve got a checklist for drivers:
- Stop and yield in crosswalks
- Give bikes wide berth
- Check before turning, especially near bike lanes
- Stick to speed limits—even on those tempting open stretches
And for us? Ride predictable:
- Obey lights and hand-signals
- Stay on the right and use bike lanes
- Lights front/rear after dark
This ain’t PR fluff. Victor Peterzen got his first bike at 10—then killed in Northwest Houston three months later. That’s the human cost—real kid, real family, catastrophic loss.
The pedestrian/cyclist safety campaign officially hit stride in March, but it’s part of a bigger safety push that started back in December. Holiday events, speed zone crackdowns, now walking billboards in crash zones. It’s not a quick splash—it’s a slow boil.
How about you—what’s the closest call you’ve had this year?
