WPHS Intersection Public Comment

On June 16, 2025, a West Plains High School student was critically injured while crossing the street in a crosswalk on their way to school. This incident is unacceptable. As a city, we must do everything in our power to prevent such tragedies from occurring. Below are immediate recommendations to improve safety at this intersection, as well as longer-term solutions to ensure that similar incidents do not happen anywhere else in our community.

Immediate / Low-Cost Solutions for Loop 335/Arden

The Ask

Direct city staff to immediately implement lane reduction and lower speed limits at Loop 335/Helium & Arden.

Why Action Is Needed

• Every 10.7 days, someone dies in a traffic crash in Amarillo.

• Safe Streets 4 All ordinance guides us on addressing this issue now to reduce those fatalities

• Recent near-fatal crash of a West Plains High School student highlights urgent risk.

• Parents, students, and community leaders have called this intersection a safety nightmare.

Lane Reduction(“Road Diet”)

• Reduces lanes from 2 to 1 in each direction

• Slows traffic, halves crossing distance, proven to cut crashes by up to 47%

• Move existing or add additional cones and signage to close 2nd lane

Permanent Speed limit reduction

• Lowers vehicle speed at all hours to account for non-school times

• The risk of death increases dramatically with speed

  • 23 mph – 10%

  • 32 mph – 25%

  • 42 mph – 50%

  • 50 mph – 75%

  • 58 mph – 90%

• Replace existing signage or add temporary

Traffic Ordinances to Explore for Citywide Safety

1. Permanent 30 mph Buffer School Zones

1. Existing Framework:

   1. Sec. 16-3-117 (School zones) sets school zone speed to 20 mph or faster with no cause required to justify the greater than 20 mph.

2. Proposed Amendment:

   1. Amend Sec. 16-3-117 to establish a permanent 30 mph speed limit within 300 feet of all school property lines, regardless of time of day, with a 20 mph active school zone, remove exceptions to have higher than 20 mph school zones.

3. Justification:

   1. Prevents high-speed approaches (e.g., WPHS’ 55 mph / AHS’ 45 mph) and addresses crashes occurring outside traditional hours. Lower speeds reduce injury risk for all users.

4. Success:

   1. Edmonton, Canada 19 mph school zones led to a 71% reduction in collisions and injuries near school

2. Daylighting Mandate (No Parking Near Crosswalks)

1. Existing Framework:

   1. Amarillo Municipal Code §16-3 (Traffic) lacks parking visibility standards.

2. Proposed Amendment:

   1. Amend §16-3 to prevent any vehicle from parking within 20 feet of any crosswalk at any time. This ensures unobstructed visibility for pedestrians and drivers.

3. Justification:

   1. Aligns with Amarillo SS4A Plan, daylighting improves sightlines, reducing pedestrian-vehicle conflicts.

4. Success:

   1. Austin, TX: 32% reduction in pedestrian crashes after implementing daylighting near schools.

   2. National Best Practice: MUTCD and Safe Routes to School recommend 20–30 feet clear at crosswalks for safety

   3. How to Daylight Your City’s Intersections (and Why It Matters)

3. Traffic Calming Triggers

1. Existing Framework:

   1. Code §16-3 (Traffic) lacks automatic triggers to evolve and prevent repeated safety threats.

2. Proposed Amendment:

   1. Adopt a rule that triggers automatic traffic safety response.

   2. Example, when any roadway meets one of these conditions: 2+ injury crashes in 12 months or Over 5,000 daily vehicles within 300 feet of school/ park or a fatality occurs the city will install temporary traffic calming measures within 10 days and create a plan to implement a permanent solution within one year. This allows for an immediate temporary solution (traffic bollards, movable curb extensions) while permanent upgrades (raised crosswalks, bulb-outs, lane resizing, pedestrian beacons) are reviewed and installed.

3. Justification:Temporary options allow same-week implementation; uses existing crash data (no new studies needed); data-driven approach ensures rapid response to emerging risks, preventing repeat incidents.

4. Success: Wauwatosa, WI, Portland, ME, Miami, FL: Traffic calming measures (speed humps, curb extensions) after crash thresholds led to reduced speeds and improved safety for all users

4. Pavement Stenciling/Coloring

1. Existing Framework:

   1. Code §16-3 covers signage but not road markings.

2. Proposed Amendment:

   1. Amend §16-3-117 (School Zones) to include language calling for street stencils identifying the school zone. This may include a simple “SCHOOL ZONE” or the whole area should be colored to indicate the speed reduction and special zone.

3. Justification:

   1. Pavement coloring increase driver awareness and compliance

4. Success:

   1. National SRTS (Safe Routes to School) Guide: Stencils are a recommended best practice for school zone visibility and have been shown to increase compliance by 27%