Travis County, TX — January 5, 2026, a pedestrian lost their life due to a car accident at approximately 2:00 a.m. along Interstate Highway 35.

Details surrounding the accident remain scarce. According to authorities, the accident occurred somewhere near Koenig Lane on I-35 (in the vicinity of U.S. 290).

Officials indicate that, for as yet unknown reasons, a pedestrian was hit by a motor vehicle. The victim reportedly sustained fatal injuries as a result of the collision.

Additional information pertaining to this incident—including the identity of the pedestrian—is not available at this point in time. The investigation is currently ongoing.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

When a person is struck and killed on a major interstate in the early morning hours, the circumstances are often unclear—but that’s exactly why a thorough investigation is necessary. With limited public information and a fatal outcome, the need to examine every possible contributing factor becomes all the more pressing.

1. Did the authorities thoroughly investigate the crash?
Pedestrian collisions on interstates raise immediate questions about how and why the person was on foot in that environment. Did investigators determine the pedestrian’s location relative to traffic lanes? Was there any effort to analyze the driver’s line of sight, vehicle speed, or reaction time? In dark, high-speed settings like I-35 near Koenig Lane, visibility and timing are critical factors that require careful documentation. If those aspects weren’t fully evaluated, conclusions about fault or preventability may be premature.

2. Has anyone looked into the possibility that a vehicle defect caused the crash?
If the driver failed to avoid the pedestrian, investigators should ask whether the vehicle’s systems performed as expected. Were the headlights functioning properly? Did pedestrian detection or automatic emergency braking systems (if equipped) activate? Without a post-crash inspection of the vehicle, any failure in those safety components could be missed, even if they played a role in the outcome.

3. Has all the electronic data relating to the crash been collected?
The vehicle likely recorded key information—speed, throttle, braking activity, and steering input. That data can confirm whether the driver had time to react and whether the vehicle systems responded. Investigators should also seek out dashcam footage, GPS logs, phone usage records, and traffic camera footage that may show the pedestrian’s movements before the crash. If those sources weren’t preserved immediately, critical details may already be lost.

Crashes like this require more than surface-level conclusions. A pedestrian on a highway is an unusual and high-risk scenario, and the only way to understand it fully is by investigating every element—human, mechanical, and environmental.

Takeaways:

• Fatal pedestrian crashes on interstates require detailed scene and timing analysis.
• Mechanical or system failures in the striking vehicle must be ruled out through inspection.
• Vehicle data and surveillance footage may provide the only reliable account of the incident.