Photo By Samantha Harms | The impound lot at Fort Cavazos has several cars that have been involved in traffic...... read more read more
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FORT CAVAZOS, Texas — Fort Cavazos has had more than 400 traffic collisions since the beginning of 2023.
Captain Eric Yahnel, the supervisor for the traffic section with the law enforcement division for the Directorate of Emergency Services, wants to warn Soldiers, residents, family members, workers and visitors to slow down and look left, right and left again when driving.
“There’s a few major things that I’ve seen, and it’s prevalent all over the installation,” Yahnel shared. “Obviously, speeding is an issue. We’re limited on personnel in this section, like every other section within the military. Recruiting is tough, retention is tough. But speeding, it’s something you’re always going to see out there on the roads and we’re not trying to stop people from speeding. What we’re trying to do is stop people from speeding in the wrong place.
“And that means other traffic is present, pedestrian traffic is present, here at intersections where there’s commonly a lot of traffic collisions,” he continued. “That’s where we’re trying to ask people to not speed.”
Yahnel stresses that while it is important to abide by the law and not speed, he is also realistic and knows it will happen. And, if someone chooses to speed, he would rather that person pay extra attention to the road.
“There’s a lot of different speeding laws when we talk about the Texas transportation code,” he explained. “You have the speed limit that says 30 miles per hour, right? But that’s not exactly the case. The case is you need to take in consideration a lot of things. What’s the environmental factors? Is the sun shining down? Is something blocking your vision? Is the windshield clear? There’s just a lot of things we need to take into consideration.”
Drivers should also be cognizant of pedestrians. During physical training hours, there are dozens of Soldiers in the middle of the roadways. During regular business hours, Soldiers and civilians alike are trying to walk across roads to arrive at their destinations. It is important to remember that those walking may step out into the road at any given moment.
Additionally, pedestrians need to know their own rights.
“The big issue is that pedestrians do not have the right-of-way,” Yahnel explained. “Everybody thinks, ‘I’m a pedestrian. I have the right-of-way.’ By Texas state law, you are required before you leave that shoulder or roadway or curb or sidewalk, to ensure that it’s safe for you to enter the roadway. People don’t.
“As a pedestrian, take care of yourself,” he continued. “Think about your body as precious, so make sure it’s clear before you cross the road.”
The other issue that Yahnel has seen is people running lights or assuming they have the right-of-way.
“There’s two other traffic offenses that we’re commonly running into in these intersections,” he shared. “If we take, for example, (the intersection at) 761st Tank Battalion Ave. and T.J. Mills is where we have a lot of collisions. Because what’s happening is people are traveling either north or south on Mills, they have a solid green, circular light, (and) they believe they have the right-of-way to make a left turn. Now we’re having massive collisions in these intersections, because they don’t.
“And a lot of people are failing to yield in the intersection,” Yahnel continued. “And so, we get in the T-bone collisions, (with) ambulances (having to taking people) to (Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center) for treatment. And we also have a lot of issues within intersections with people failing to yield the roadway that are coming from a stop at a stop sign or a yield sign.”
Yahnel stresses that drivers, and pedestrians alike, need to do their part when it comes to vehicle safety.
“A lot of people have tunnel vision when they’re driving,” he said. “They’re looking at the roadway directly in front of them. And I would highly encourage people to stop doing that; what they need to do is use their peripheral vision to pay attention to the roadway, but scan the shoulders. Scan the shoulders, the roadways, scan the left and the right continuously, because we have major collisions that are occurring, because people just have their blinders on directly what’s in front of them, and not at the potential hazards on the left or right side of the roadway.”
The following are some important factors to know about when it comes to operating a vehicle safely.
Speeding
• According to the Texas Transportation Code 545.351.1, going one to 10 mph above the posted speed limit will result in a $185 fine. Traveling 11 to 15 mph above the posted speed limit results in a $210 fine, and 16 to 20 mph above results in a $235 fine. 21 mph and above results in a $260 fine.
• Additionally, according to the Fort Cavazos Regulation 190-2, 190-5, traveling 20 mph above the posted speed limit warrants post suspension.
Traffic control signals
• An operator of a vehicle facing a circular green signal may proceed straight or turn right or left, unless a sign prohibits the turn. It is important to remember that the operator shall, while the signal is exhibited, yield the right-of-way to other vehicles lawfully in the intersection.
• An operator of a vehicle facing only a steady red signal shall stop at a clearly marked stop line, or prior to the crosswalk.
Vehicle entering stop or yield intersection
• An operator approaching an intersection on a roadway that is controlled by a stop sign, after stopping, as required, shall yield the right-of-way to a vehicle that has interested the intersection from another highway or that is approaching so closely as to be an immediate hazard to the operator’s movement in, or across, the intersection.
• An operator approaching an intersection on a roadway that is controlled by a yield sign, shall slow to a speed that is reasonable under the existing conditions, and yield the right-of-way to a vehicle in the intersection or approaching intersection. If there is a collision, it is presumed the operator that drove past the yield sign failed to yield the right-of-way.
| Date Taken: | 09.07.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 12.07.2023 17:57 |
| Story ID: | 459448 |
| Location: | FORT CAVAZOS, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 231 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Fort Cavazos DES reminds drivers to look left, right, left again when driving, by Samantha Harms, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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