AUSTIN (KXAN) — The city of Austin says the voice of Ray Benson helps blind and visually impaired people cross Lamar at 5th Street and will soon help others at intersections along Lamar Boulevard.

The city plans to showcase the new Accessible Pedestrian Signals (APS) on Thursday in part as a thank-you to the legendary singer. The city announcement says the event will also educate the public about how APS makes crossings safer.

Benson, lead singer for Asleep at the Wheel, recorded messages for 18 crossings along Lamar Boulevard.

The city says some of the crossings already have APS capability and other crossings will get APS added soon.

According to Wednesday’s announcement, Accessible Pedestrian Signals help the blind and visually impaired cross streets safely by communicating messages at signalized intersections.