SAN ANTONIO – What some people see as the answer to reducing the number of crashes at a troubled Live Oak intersection may still be months away from becoming a reality.
KSAT 12 News first reported on the problem at the intersection of Toepperwein Road and Lookout Road in March.
At that time, Texas Department of Transportation data showed only a handful of crashes in 2026, though about three dozen had occurred at the same corner the previous year. Since that report, TXDOT records show an additional 12 crashes so far this year.
“You can sit here, and it’s very entertaining sometimes, but then it’s really scary,” Robert Cavazos told KSAT 12 News in March.
Cavazos lives nearby and said he regularly sees the collisions from his home.
“There was one accident one time where that railroad crossing arm is. The guy took it completely out of the ground when he hit it,” he said.
While records show the majority of the crashes so far this year involved relatively minor injuries or no injuries at all, some residents fear it is only a matter of time before someone is seriously hurt or killed.
The intersection features stop signs for drivers traveling on Lookout Road.
Drivers on Toepperwein Road have no signals at all and have the right of way.
Observers like Omar Maldonado said that’s part of the confusion that leads to the crashes.
“I think because it’s not a four-way stop, everybody’s stopping, and that’s what’s starting to cause a chain reaction,” he said.
Maldonado was working in the area Wednesday, supporting a road crew installing underground fiber systems. The crew’s presence led some people on social media to speculate the workers might be installing the traffic signal.
However, their work was unrelated to that upcoming project.
KSAT 12 News made several appeals dating back to March for an interview with someone from the City of Live Oak’s administrative office.
Instead, the city emailed a statement each time, saying that TXDOT was overseeing the traffic signal project,
TXDOT, in turn, said in a statement it is only assisting with the project, which is under the direction of the City of Live Oak.
Union Pacific Railroad is also involved because the traffic light would affect the railroad tracks at that intersection.
A TXDOT spokeswoman said work on the traffic light could begin in early 2027, though the date is subject to change.
Read also: