Most Texas drivers will no longer be required to have their cars pass an annual safety exam after state lawmakers removed the rule from Texas code.Texas is one of 13 states that mandate annual inspections for cars. That will change in about 18 months now that the Texas Legislature has given final approval toSupporters of the bill called the safety inspections time consuming and inconvenient. Opponents of the bill say it could set Texas drivers, and future Texans, on a dangerous path.
"The majority of our business is centered around making sure people's vehicles are safe," said Charissa Barnes, owner of the Official Inspection Station in San Antonio, to lawmakers earlier this year. "We need to make sure that their cars, the people joining us in Texas, are safe."The Legislature repealed provisions in state law that mandate annual vehicle inspections. However, the $7.50 fee remains intact under a new name: the inspection program replacement fee.
Almost a quarter of the people surveyed in the study were asked by a mechanic to fix slick or defective tires during an inspection, potentially preventing more accidents. Anotherfound that defective cars in Texas were more than three times as likely to be involved in a crash that resulted in a fatality.
Texas highways are notoriously dangerous. At least one person dies on a Texas highway each day. According to the most recent , 4,489 people were killed in auto crashes in Texas during 2021, or about 1.56 deaths per 100,000 miles traveled by drivers. That's up from 1.36 deaths per 100,000 in 2017.