T H EY ’ R E FAST, W E ’ R E F U R I OUS How street racing and intersection takeovers became a neighborhood problem
Story by CONNOR HENRY
YOU CA N H E A R I T F RO M M I L ES AWAY. Engines roaring, tires screeching and spewing clouds of smoke, spectators yelling and cheering. Sometimes fireworks and gunshots ring out when the crowd gets especially excited. Reports of street racing from the Dallas Police Department shot up in 2020, from 4,867 in 2019, to 8,441 last year, and 911 calls related to speeding and racing have increased every year since 2016. Metrics from the first part of 2021 show no signs of reports decreasing. “The number one phone call I get from
people is about street racing,” says City Councilman Chad West. Street racing and car stunts are by no means new phenomena, but last year, intersection takeovers, excessive speeding and extremely loud vehicles started to infiltrate the Downtown area. People noticed the problem, and DPD patrols increased; lane reductions at key intersections and temporary stop signs were also implemented to calm traffic. “Curbing street racing in the city became a priority, and it worked,” West says. “But since it worked, it got pushed to the neighborhoods, including Oak Cliff.”
MARCH 2021
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