Wrong-Way Crashes on Texas Highways: My Take on Why They Happen and What to Do

I am Josh Alexander, owner of J. Alexander Law Firm in Texas. A driver coming at you on the wrong side of a divided highway is among the most dangerous things you will ever meet on the road, and the few seconds you get to react are everything.

Here is what happened, according to the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office as reported by WFAA: on Thursday night, July 9, drivers started calling 911 about a man headed westbound in the eastbound lanes of I-20 near Hutchins. He narrowly missed several cars, hit the concrete center median, and died at the scene. I am not here to judge a man who lost his life. I am writing for the drivers he nearly hit, because the next time a car comes down the wrong side of the highway, the near miss may be a direct hit.

Why wrong-way crashes happen, and why I never blame the road first

A wrong-way crash is caused by a driver traveling against the flow of traffic, and on a freeway it almost always ends in a head-on hit. People ask me how common wrong-way drivers are, and the honest answer is rare but deadly. Impairment leads the causes, but it is not alone: drowsy drivers, older drivers confused by an unfamiliar interchange, and distracted drivers make the same ramp misread, and together those causes are why Texas leads the nation in these deaths. These wrecks cluster at exit ramps, usually as a car accident on the highway at night, exactly like the one on I-20. And because not entering a highway against traffic is the most basic duty a Texas driver owes, the fault traces back to the driver, not to bad luck.

Why a wrong-way crash is so much deadlier than an ordinary wreck

A wrong-way collision, usually with an impaired driver at the wheel, is almost always a head-on hit, and because both cars’ speeds combine at impact, the injuries are catastrophic in a way a rear-end rarely is: brain injuries, spinal damage, and, when the hit cannot be survived, the wrongful death claims I cover below. TxDOT counts these wrecks as under one percent of Texas crashes, yet among the most severe, which is why the value of these claims runs so much higher than an ordinary wreck.

What I tell drivers to do the moment they see a wrong-way driver

Here is how to deal with a wrong-way driver, in the order I would do it:

1. Get out of the left lane Move right, out of their most likely path.
2. Slow down hard and safely Every mile an hour you drop is force taken out of a head-on hit.
3. Aim for the shoulder Give yourself room and let the car pass.
4. Flash and honk Warn the oncoming driver and the cars behind you.
5. Call 911 once you are safe A wrong-way driver is a real emergency, and that call is how police stop wrong-way drivers; the callers on I-20 are why police were already responding.

What not to do when the car coming at you is on your side of the road

These instincts get people killed, and each one has a safer opposite.

What to do in the first minutes after a wrong-way collision

If a collision happens, what you do next shapes your safety and your claim, so I would work this list in order:

• Get everyone away from the travel lanes and turn your hazards on.
• Call 911, even if you think you are fine.
• Photograph the vehicles, the lanes, and the direction each car faced.
• Get names and numbers from the 911 callers and witnesses.
• See a doctor the same day; a head-on hit hides brain and spine injuries behind adrenaline.

Who is at fault in a wrong-way accident in Texas?

What happens if you drive the wrong way, even accidentally? In Texas it can be negligence per se, meaning the violation itself establishes fault, so a driver who accidentally goes on the wrong side of the road still owns the crash. To win, I prove four elements: duty, breach, causation, and damages, and negligence per se hands me the first two, so the value of the case turns on causation and damages. If the driver was drunk, he also faces criminal DWI charges, or intoxication manslaughter if someone died, and that criminal finding strengthens the civil case. Insurers determine who was at fault from the physical evidence. You generally have two years to file, and far less against a government body. Whether your case needs a lawyer is covered in my guide on getting a lawyer for a Texas car accident.

When a bar, the road, or an estate shares the blame

Because impairment drives so many of these crashes, the blame often reaches past the driver. Under the Texas dram shop law, a bar that overserved an obviously drunk driver can share liability, and that claim stands on its own even after negligence per se has already fixed the driver’s fault. Because these crashes cluster at the same misread ramps, Texas is installing wrong-way detection systems at them, and a ramp alert plus your 911 call is how police intercept a wrong-way car before it reaches traffic. Where a known dangerous ramp was ignored, the road authority can share blame too, but that claim runs on a notice deadline as short as six months, which is why I raise it early or not at all. And when the man driving the wrong way died, as on I-20, the claim proceeds against his auto policy and his estate.

From my desk: how I build a wrong-way crash case

Josh Alexander

Founding Attorney, J. Alexander Law Firm

My take on wrong-way crashes

I do not spend much time proving fault in these cases; a driver going the wrong way down a highway made that case for me. I spend my time on the money, because a catastrophic head-on injury can outrun a single policy in a hurry, so I find every layer of coverage and lock the evidence early.

And I mean this: call me before you give any recorded statement, because what you tell an insurer is what fixes your share of fault. The first story told usually wins. My guide on dealing with insurance companies in Texas shows why.

J. Alexander Law Firm handles motor vehicle and serious injury cases across Texas from its Dallas office. Founding attorney Josh Alexander has been named a Super Lawyers Rising Star every year from 2022 through 2026.

What a wrong-way crash claim can be worth, and what insurance covers

The value tracks the harm, because the brain and spinal injuries a head-on causes are exactly what drive the medical bills, lost income, and pain and suffering an insurer must pay. And when the driver was drunk, Texas also allows exemplary damages for gross negligence on top of those compensable losses, with a criminal intoxication conviction serving as strong evidence of exactly that. So the first calculation I run is whether the sources below hold enough coverage.

If you lost someone to a wrong-way driver

If a driver on the wrong side of the road took someone you love, I am sorry, and the law gives your family a path. A Texas wrongful death claim lets a spouse, children, or parents recover for what the crash took away, and a survival claim covers what your loved one suffered. Because the claim survives the at-fault driver’s own death, it proceeds against his estate, and a parallel criminal intoxication manslaughter case can strengthen it. The deadline is generally two years, but the 911 calls and toxicology start disappearing long before that, which is why the evidence checklist above matters from day one and why I say talk to a lawyer early.

If a wrong-way driver hit you or your family, talk to me first

The I-20 crash was a near miss for every driver around that median. If you were hit by a wrong-way driver, do not give a recorded statement before you talk to me. The fault is usually clear; my job is making sure every source of coverage pays.