SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Caltrans San Diego is sending out a warning to drivers to be safe, as the department also focuses on preventing wrong-way crashes on our freeways.
The agency announced on Friday that nearly $9 million will be used to make upgrades to more than 60 highway ramps throughout the county. The hope is to prevent wrong-way drivers from entering into on-coming traffic.
"Wrong-way driver collisions account for less than 1% of all highway collisions on the state highway system. But when they happen, they lead to very tragic consequences," said Caltrans District 11 Director Gustavo Dallarda.
Some of Caltrans' upgrades to the highway onramps include LED flashing lights, and one-way pavement markings and arrows that can only be seen when someone is going the wrong way.
The plan will also include driver education on ways to prevent driving on the opposite side of the road.
According to Caltrans, about 37 people on average are killed in wrong-way crashes each year in California. At one point, San Diego was considered one of the deadliest places in the state for these kinds of crashes.
Most recently, a married couple who worked for the San Diego Police Department was killed in a wrong-way crash back in June. The couple was driving on I-5 in San Ysidro when a female driver hit them head-on.
The department says in San Diego, wrong-way drivers decreased by 44% after reflectors were installed.
