Supporters of a plan to do away with the annual vehicle inspections say we waste millions of hours each year getting those stickers. Senate Bill 15-88 would put an end to it, although Houston drivers would still have to come in.
“For people in the greater Houston area, in Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin and El Paso, you'll continue to have an emissions inspection performed on an annual basis, but you won't have the safety portion,” says Greg Cole, a member of the Texas State Inspection Association board of directors.
He says there are more dangerous cars on the road than we think.
“(If they) Get an inspection and they fail for something,” he says. “They get it fixed and get a free inspection within 15 days. (Now) it's a pass (and) that fail goes away.”
So, the microscopic number of cars which are unsafe may be a little more numerous than we think.