Mother Says Denton County Road Is Too Dangerous
DENTON (CBSDFW.COM) - There is a stretch of state highway in Denton County that one North Texas mother thinks is too dangerous and deadly. Highway 380 is a heavily traveled two-lane road, and it was also the site of a 17-year-old's fatal car crash last year.
Samantha Rogers and her friend, Delani Mansil, were hit head-on by another vehicle while traveling along Highway 380 near FM 156. A truck veered across the narrow two-lane road. Both of the girls died after the crash.
Eva Czerniak is the mother of Rogers. Highway 380 is now a constant reminder of her tragic loss, while she struggles to make sense of her daughter's untimely death. "Her basketball number, 22, they retired it this year," Czerniak said of her daughter's jersey.
Then, just last week, another man died in another car crash along the same stretch of road. On March 30, a 24-year-old Denton man was killed as he traveled along Highway 380. "How many more people need to die on that stretch of road?" Czerniak asked.
But Czerniak hopes that her daughter's loss was not in vain. Czerniak is pushing the Texas Department of Transportation and state leaders to widen Highway 380. "We lost two very good girls," she said. "If you're not going to widen the road, then do something about the median to keep cars from crossing over. There's got to be something to make that stretch of road safer."
According to an official with TxDOT, funds allocated for fixing that stretch of Highway 380 were redirected last year because, at the time, the project was not considered "shovel ready." But now, all expanision plans are in place. TxDOT is simply waiting on the funds to start the project.
"Those plans are underway," explained Cynthia Northrop White with TxDOT. "We don't have the funding, but they're ready to go."
