Gas taxes History Roads Toll roads: Alamo Regional Mobility Authority Loop 1604 MPO Texas Department of Transportation US 281 widening
by Brian
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Why haven’t they widened Loop 1604?
A sign on Loop 1604 in 1983 – It’s just true today as it was then!
One of the biggest gripes among San Antonio drivers is that Loop 1604 North, from roughly Bandera Rd. to I-35 on the northeast side, is still just two lanes each way and, as a result, is often congested. It may seem like TxDOT isn’t doing anything about it, but that’s not the case. An expansion of 1604 has been in the works since the last millennium, but has gotten sidetracked for several reasons over the years. Fortunately, there is light at the end of the proverbial tunnel.
Commuting Roads Transit: HOV lanes I-10 Texas Department of Transportation US 281 widening
by Brian
Comments Off on Not gonna use the HOV lane? It still benefits you!
Not gonna use the HOV lane? It still benefits you!
TxDOT is preparing to build San Antonio’s first two high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes on I-10 West and US 281 North. Construction of both is scheduled to start this year.
One comment I frequently hear about HOV lanes is from people saying they won’t use them, so they won’t benefit from them. A corollary of that is that people who won’t use them don’t think their tax money should be spent on them. As is often the case, both of these viewpoints fail to see the bigger picture.
Roads Safety: Texas Department of Transportation US 281 wrong-way drivers
by Brian
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Stopping wrong-way drivers
In San Antonio and across Texas, there has been a rash of wrong-way drivers (WWD) over the past few years. In San Antonio last year, there was a WWD about every other day. Fortunately, 80% of those drivers caused no accidents. But sadly, seven people were killed by WWDs last year. Of no surprise was that the majority of WWDs were intoxicated.
To combat the problem, several agencies formed the San Antonio Wrong Way Driver Task Force in March 2011. Those agencies include TxDOT, SAPD, City of San Antonio Public Works Department, Bexar County Sherrif’s Office, and Texas Transportation Institute, and the Federal Highway Administration. The task force worked to determine the extent and characteristics of the local problem, evaluate previous research and countermeasures, and formulate a plan to test and implement countermeasures locally.
Construction and closures Roads: Babcock Road Blanco Road Bulverde Road intersection Medical Drive South Texas Medical Center superstreet US 281 widening
by Brian
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Blanco Road done! (well, almost); Babcock/Medical on deck
Somewhere on the new section of Blanco
Earlier this week, crews opened all the new lanes on the final stretch of Blanco Road outside Loop 1604, specifically from Wilderness Oaks to south of Huebner. Last month, the new lanes north of Wilderness Oaks were opened. All that’s left to do now is some striping, signage, and other “punch-list” items and this long-awaited improvement will be completed. Along with the recent completion of the US 281 superstreet (well, it too is still getting finishing touches), traffic in and around Stone Oak should start to see appreciable improvements. Additionally, off to the east, work on widening Bulverde Road from 1604 to Evans is ongoing (expected completion is late 2012) and the city is in the initial planning stages to widen Stone Oak Boulevard to six lanes.
Meanwhile, work is scheduled to start in the next week or so on the latest Medical Center intersection improvement project. Crews will begin rebuilding the Babcock/Medical intersection in a manner similar to the other recent intersection upgrades. I haven’t see the plans yet (I’ll update this post if/when I do), but I suspect there will be dual left turn lanes from southbound Babcock onto Medical and probably dual right-turn lanes from westbound Medical onto Babcock in addition to right-turn bays in all four quadrants and other improvements. And nearby, work on the Hamilton-Wolfe/Floyd Curl intersection is wrapping-up; I expect it to be essentially complete by the end of this month.
- UPDATE (11/15/10): Medical/Babcock plans
- UPDATE (11/18/10): Express-News story about Blanco
Construction and closures Roads: stimulus funds Texas Department of Transportation US 281 Wurzbach Parkway
by Brian
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Construction starting next week on Wurzbach Pkwy
TxDOT announced today that work will start next week on the first of three phases to finally complete the Wurzbach Parkway. Crews will begin November 1st on the section from Wetmore to Jones-Maltsberger, with completion expected in early 2014. A month later, on December 1st, work is scheduled to begin on the segment from Blanco Rd. to West Ave. That section should be done about a year sooner, in early 2013.
That leaves the final section from West Ave. to Jones-Maltsberger. That stretch is scheduled to go to bid in May of next year.
All three sections will feature a four-lane divided parkway similar to that already in-place east of Wetmore. Despite earlier uncertainty over costs, it appears now that the projects will include overpasses at Blanco, West Ave., US 281, Jones-Maltsberger, and Starcrest. However, there still are no plans at this time for a full interchange at US 281.
The total cost of all three segments is expected to be around $130 million and is being funded with Proposition 12 funds approved by the Texas Transportation Commission (TTC) about a year ago. Officials had originally hoped to get federal stimulus funds for the project, but when that didn’t materialize, the TTC took advantage of new Prop 12 funds authorized by the Legislature. The Wurzbach project was the largest single Prop 12 project approved last year.
Construction and closures Roads: De Zavala Jones-Maltsberger railroad crossing stimulus funds US 281 widening
by Brian
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Work wrapping up at the Quarry, starting on De Zavala
Crews opened all the new lanes on Jones-Maltsberger at the railroad tracks by the Quarry this past weekend. Finish-up work should be completed by Thanksgiving, just in time for the Christmas shopping frenzy. As you may recall, work began there earlier this year to finally remove the long-standing bottleneck between the Quarry and US 281. Work was expected to be finished last month, but this year’s unusual rain delayed things just a bit.
Meanwhile, work began last month on a long-awaited (or maybe long-feared) project to widen De Zavala between Babcock and Cogburn. The project will widen the road to five lanes (two each way plus a center left-turn lane) and add sidewalks, curbs, and updated traffic signals. The $17 million project is expected to be completed in mid 2012.
Roads: Basse Road Castroville Road congestion Culebra Road Fredericksburg Road I-35 Loop 1604 Nacogdoches Road Texas Department of Transportation US 281 Wurzbach Road
by Brian
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Most congested roads in San Antonio
TxDOT released their second annual list of the 100 most congested roadway segments in the state. Last year’s list inexplicably missed US 281 north of Loop 1604, but not this year. However, it still wasn’t tops in Bexar County. more »
E-N rips AGUA
If you didn’t see it, the Express-News editorial board took AGUA to task today over their 281/1604 interchange lawsuit, calling the legal action “stunningly irresponsible” and saying that “(a)ny notion that (AUGA is) operating in good faith now lacks credibility.” Furthemore, the editorial reveals some of the ludicrous demands made by AGUA. Check it out:
http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/aguas_lawsuitclearly_misguided_101672858.html?showFullArticle=y
There’s also a good John Branch cartoon:
http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/cartoonists/Latest_cartoons_from_John_Branch.html?c=n#1