{"id":89574,"date":"2025-12-16T04:49:06","date_gmt":"2025-12-16T04:49:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/89574\/"},"modified":"2025-12-16T04:49:06","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T04:49:06","slug":"txdot-denies-city-of-san-antonio-request-to-keep-rainbow-crosswalks-after-abbotts-order-for-removal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/89574\/","title":{"rendered":"TxDOT denies City of San Antonio request to keep rainbow crosswalks after Abbott\u2019s order for removal"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN ANTONIO \u2013 The Texas Department of Transportation has denied the City of San Antonio\u2019s request<\/a> to keep the pride district\u2019s rainbow crosswalks after Gov. Greg Abbott\u2019s order<\/a> to remove \u201cany and all political ideologies\u201d from Texas streets.<\/p>\n

In an Oct. 8 news release from Abbott\u2019s office, the governor called on TxDOT to enforce the removal of non-standard surface markings, signage and signals that \u201cdo not directly support traffic control or safety.\u201d<\/p>\n

The crosswalks, located at the intersection of North Main Avenue and East Evergreen Street within the Pride Cultural Heritage District<\/a>, have been a point of contention<\/a> since the order.<\/p>\n

Assistant City Manager John Peterek filed the city\u2019s exemption request on Nov. 5.<\/p>\n

KSAT obtained a Nov. 25 letter from Director of TxDOT\u2019s Traffic Safety Division George Villarreal to Peterek. In the letter, Villarreal said TxDOT \u201cdoes not consider this exemption request acceptable.\u201d <\/p>\n

Villarreal requested the city either submit an updated exemption request addressing compliance or submit a plan of action before Dec. 10 for removing the crosswalks.<\/p>\n

\u201cFailure to comply with this directive may result in the withholding or denial of state or federal funds and\/or the suspension of agreements between TxDOT and the city,\u201d Villarreal said.<\/p>\n

In a response letter on Dec. 10 obtained by KSAT, Peterek said the city \u201ccontinues to believe that the crosswalks in question are safer than before the installation of the rainbow-colored paint, that the intersection is safer than comparable intersections, and that it demonstrated the importance of the crosswalks to the Pride Cultural Heritage District.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNevertheless, the City will respect TxDOT\u2019s decision,\u201d the letter states.<\/p>\n

Peterek said the city plans to engage with potential contractors to remove the crosswalks and identify available funds for the removal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe City will complete removal and replacement operations on or before January 15, 2026,\u201d Peterek said.<\/p>\n

Background<\/p>\n

According to TxDOT, the SAFE ROADS<\/a> (Safe Arterials for Everyone through Reliable Operations and Distraction-Reducing Strategies) initiative \u2014 launched by U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on July 1 \u2014 emphasizes that intersections and crosswalks should be \u201ckept free from distractions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Abbott previously warned that cities who did not comply with the order \u201cwill face consequences including the withholding or denial of state and federal road funding and suspension of agreements with TxDOT.\u201d<\/p>\n

>> Fight over the rainbow crosswalk: City leaders, community react to Gov. Abbott\u2019s request to remove it<\/a><\/p>\n

In the city\u2019s exemption request, which was directed to TxDOT officials, Peterek said the department informed the city that the rainbow crosswalks were the \u201csole location\u201d within city limits in violation of the new directive.<\/p>\n

Peterek said in the letter that the city \u201cwould appreciate guidance concerning the statutory or regulatory authority TxDOT is relying on to support its new directive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe City does not believe the rainbow-colored crosswalks are prohibited by the current Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways,\u201d the letter stated.<\/p>\n

The city cited a \u201cdemonstrable public safety benefit\u201d and \u201coverwhelming community benefit and support\u201d as reasons for exemption.<\/p>\n

According to safety data, pedestrian injuries are less frequent at the intersection since the installation of the rainbow crosswalks and are less frequent than a nearby intersection in comparison, the letter stated.<\/p>\n

The letter also noted the crosswalks as a \u201ccenterpiece\u201d of the pride district.<\/p>\n

Related coverage on KSAT.com<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Copyright 2025 by KSAT – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SAN ANTONIO \u2013 The Texas Department of Transportation has denied the City of San Antonio\u2019s request to keep…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":89575,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[392,1183,6825,3332,82,84,83,271],"class_list":{"0":"post-89574","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-antonio","8":"tag-greg-abbott","9":"tag-lgbtq","10":"tag-pride","11":"tag-rainbow-crosswalk","12":"tag-san-antonio","13":"tag-san-antonio-headlines","14":"tag-san-antonio-news","15":"tag-txdot"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89574","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=89574"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89574\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89575"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89574"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89574"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89574"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}