Texas Department of Transportation v. Perches

In State Department of Highways & Public Transportation v. Payne, 838 S.W.2d 235 (Tex.1992), we considered whether an off-road condition can be a special defect for which the State’s sovereign immunity is waived under the Texas Tort Claims Act. We noted that “[wjhether on a road or near one ... conditions can be ‘special defects ... ’ only if they pose a threat to the ordinary users of a particular roadway.” Payne, 838 S.W.2d at 238-39 n. 3. In this special defect case involving a concrete guardrail, we conclude that such barriers are generally not conditions posing a threat to ordinary users…