The October 2026 report on Black Friday traffic found that Memorial City Mall in Houston is the Texas shopping center where holiday weekend roads get most dangerous. Across Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio, Black Friday weekend brings fewer crashes than an ordinary weekend in November or December, yet a new study by Calderon Law Firm shows the roads around a handful of shopping centers move the other way.
- Memorial City Mall in Houston is the most dangerous Texas shopping center over Black Friday weekend, with road crashes rising by 77%.
- Injury crashes on Black Friday weekend happen more often around The Parks Mall at Arlington than near any other Texas mall.
- Among Texas malls with the riskiest Black Friday traffic, Shops at Rivercenter Mall in San Antonio sees the most crashes nearby, at 37 accidents.
The research examined police-reported crashes around large shopping centers in Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio to find where Black Friday weekend traffic turns most dangerous. It counted crashes within half a mile of each shopping center over the Friday-to-Sunday weekend after Thanksgiving and every other November and December weekend from 2018 to 2024. The report measured the average number of crashes per Black Friday weekend, its rise over a normal weekend, and how many crashes left someone injured. The first two measures were combined into a score out of 100 to rank the shopping centers where crashes rise.
These are the shopping malls where traffic gets the most dangerous during Black Friday:
| Location | Black Friday weekend crashes (within 0.5 mi) | Severity | ||||
| Shopping center | City | State | Avg crashes per Black Friday weekend | Avg crashes per normal weekend | Black Friday weekend change | Avg injury crashes per Black Friday weekend |
| Memorial City Mall | Houston | TX | 4.7 | 2.7 | +77% | 0.9 |
| Deerbrook Mall | Houston | TX | 4.9 | 3.6 | +33% | 0.3 |
| The Parks Mall at Arlington | Fort Worth | TX | 4.0 | 2.8 | +45% | 2.0 |
| Shops at Rivercenter Mall | San Antonio | TX | 5.3 | 4.9 | +8% | 1.4 |
| South Park Mall | San Antonio | TX | 4.3 | 3.3 | +29% | 1.3 |
You can find the full report findings and countrywide ranking by following this link.
1. Memorial City Mall, Houston
- Average crashes per Black Friday weekend: 4.7
- Average crashes per normal weekend: 2.7
- Black Friday change: +77%
- Average injury crashes: 0.9 per Black Friday weekend
Memorial City Mall in Houston leads the list of Texas shopping centers where Black Friday traffic gets dangerous. Across seven holiday seasons from 2018 through 2024, crash counts near the mall climb from an average of 2.7 on a typical November or December weekend to 4.7, a 77% jump once the holiday shopping weekend arrives. In Harris County as a whole, crash numbers dip on Black Friday weekend, so the rise near Memorial City Mall runs counter to the rest of the region.
2. Deerbrook Mall, Houston
Second place among the Texas shopping centers with the most dangerous Black Friday traffic goes to Deerbrook Mall in Houston. The entrances and access roads drivers use to reach the mall saw an average of 4.9 crashes over the Friday-to-Sunday stretch after Thanksgiving, a little above the 4.7 near Memorial City Mall. In everyday terms, the holiday weekend adds about one crash to what the area sees on other November and December weekends. From 2018 to 2024, the mall's surroundings saw more Black Friday weekend crashes than the county's own holiday pattern would predict.
3. The Parks Mall, Arlington
The Parks Mall at Arlington, in the Fort Worth area, comes in third among Texas shopping centers for dangerous Black Friday traffic, and injuries are what set it apart. The roads and parking areas nearby see 4 crashes on an average Black Friday weekend, and 2 of them leave someone hurt. Overall crash numbers there jump 45% compared with the other weekends of November and December. Put another way, a crash near this mall on Black Friday weekend is as likely to injure someone as to cause property damage alone.
4. Shops at Rivercenter, San Antonio
In San Antonio, Shops at Rivercenter Mall ranks fourth, and the number of crashes nearby is its standout figure. Over Black Friday weekend, the streets leading in and out of the mall average 5.3 crashes, more than around The Parks Mall at Arlington, and injury crashes there come to 1.4 over the same three days. On ordinary November and December weekends, the crash count on those same streets runs only a little lower than on the holiday weekend.
5. South Park Mall, San Antonio
South Park Mall in San Antonio rounds out the top five Texas malls where the holiday weekend makes the drive to the stores more dangerous. Black Friday weekend lifts crashes around the mall 29% above a normal November or December weekend. Of the crashes there that weekend, three of every ten injure someone. Bexar County's roads see fewer crashes than usual over the three days after Thanksgiving, but near South Park Mall the count goes up.
José Calderón, Founder and Trial Attorney at Calderon Law Firm, commented on the study:
"Most drivers expect the roads to be calmer over Black Friday weekend, and across a whole city they usually are. The streets right around a big mall don't always follow that pattern, though. The short drive in and out of the shopping center can be the stretch where crashes go up instead of down, and plenty of those crashes leave someone hurt. So my advice is to give those last few blocks the same attention you'd give a busy highway. Leave early, slow down as you get close to the parking lot, and if a crash does happen, get anyone who feels hurt checked out the same day and keep a record of what happened."
What Black Friday Shoppers Should Keep in Mind
A quieter city doesn’t always mean safer streets, especially in the blocks around a busy shopping center. Whether you’re headed to Memorial City Mall, The Parks Mall at Arlington or Shops at Rivercenter, plan for congestion near the entrances, watch for pedestrians crossing parking lots and give yourself extra time so you’re not rushing. A few careful minutes at the end of the drive can keep a holiday shopping trip from turning into an emergency. If you’re injured in a crash this holiday season, Calderon Law Firm can help you understand your rights and next steps.