Stranded drivers get help in Hays County

HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) - The next time your car breaks down on the highway, help may not be far away. That's because the Highway Emergency Response Operation Program is expanding their services.

Called HERO for short, the program helps stranded drivers on more than 50 miles of Central Texas highways, and Tuesday the operation moved into the northern part of Hays County along Interstate 35. 

        For free assistance call 974-HERO

The program, run by the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority, has been operating for more than three years, and in that time they've responded to over 13,000 incidents.

"We help people running out of gas, people having flat tires, it's also people who have mechanical problems," said Mike Heiligenstein, executive director of the CTRMA.

While running into trouble on the road could happen any time, many Central Texans say they don't have an emergency plan.

"I'm always like what am I going to do? Call my dad who is an hour away?," said Breauna Stanek, a student at Texas State University.

Since the programs start, police departments say they're already seeing a difference. The HERO program responds to more than a hundred calls on average each week.

According to a study by APD, there has been an 11 percent decrease in accidents on the stretch of I-35 that HERO covers.

Those numbers drove the idea home for officials in neighboring Hays County; the program's newest service area.

"There are more vehicles on the road," said Heiligenstein. "So we will adding vehicles and we will add people, which can help stop problems here in Hays County."