I have been commuting from Houston to Columbus for over 13 years. In all this time the fear of God comes across my mind as I approach Exit 698. Will I or will I not get in an accident?
Exit 698 should be renamed 'Danger Zone'! Will the drivers on the frontage road yield, or will the yield sign be ignored?
Time and time again I have had to dodge flying vehicle bullets on the frontage road at that exit near Mikeskas BBQ. Yes, there is a ‘YIELD’ clearly noticeable on the frontage road, but that just doesn’t seem to matter, or it goes unnoticed. As I have the right of way to exit off a major interstate, my defensive driving sense tells me to almost come to a stop before proceeding through the exit. Other drivers coming off I-10 have beeped their horns and flipped me off like I'm some kind of crazy person. But I am still alive to tell the rest of this story. Have you ever come face to face with an 18-wheeler?
Three weeks ago a Dollar General 18-wheeler going too fast ran that same frontage road yield sign at Exit 698. I knew that the driver would not be able to stop to avoid hitting me, so I had to swerve to my left onto concrete gravel to avoid a serious accident. It took me a while to gain my composure. I was unable to find the driver but my speculation was that he got onto I-10 west.
There were no Dollar General 18-wheelers going into town. If you know me I took this situation one step further. I drove to the local Dollar General and they gave me contact information with their corporate offices. I contacted TXDOT, reported the incident, and was given an incident report number. One more short story: Two weeks after this incident, four pickup trucks were speeding down Exist 698 frontage road. I saw they were not going to yield so I had to again come to a complete stop. Will there ever be some kind of resolution to this?
Recently, a friend of mine was in an accident with an 18-wheeler at Bernardo and I-10. I have been working out of town, and I don’t know the details, but my friend was still in a coma and was driven from Houston Memorial back to her home in Bernardo, where she is still in a coma under Hospice Care. The driver was an illegal with no insurance. The company owning this vehicle should be held accountable to my friend and her family.
Suggestion: Flashing Yield sign like they have at the 4-way stop at Altair and 71.
Debbie Damon Columbus, Texas
Editors note: The friend Damon references in a coma has died.
