Improvements along US 183 designed to thin out congestion near the highway’s intersection with I-35 will kick off spring 2020, according to Texas Department of Transportation documents.

The timeline was released at a Sept. 19 open house presentation of the project. TxDOT Public Information Officer Bradley Wheelis said construction on the improvements will take “roughly a year” to complete. An environmental study for the project began this past spring and is currently underway.

The project will add auxiliary entrance- and exit-only lanes along northbound US 183 from the southbound I-35 ramp to the Ohlen Road-Payton Gin Road exit ramp and also from the northbound entrance ramp at Lamar Boulevard to the Burnet Road exit ramp, according to TxDOT documents.

Another auxiliary lane will be added to southbound US 183 from the entrance ramp near Burnet Road to the Lamar Boulevard exit ramp. The project will further add a third main lane from the southbound I-35 exit ramp to the Cameron Road exit on US 183.

All together, the project covers 3.6 miles in length and will cost approximately $3 million to complete, Wheelis said.

TxDOT will close the northbound US 183 entrance ramp at Georgian Drive in a move designed to alleviate traffic congestion in the auxiliary lane.

"You have such a short distance between [the Georgian Drive entrance ramp] and your next exit—it is about a half-mile. It is not a whole lot of merging distance,” Wheelis said. “It was fine for traffic volumes in the past. We're getting to the point now ... where it is a tough weave.”

Wheelis said the flyover construction at the US 183 and I-35 intersection will add length to the auxiliary lane, allowing drivers additional time to merge onto or exit US 183.

The state agency is additionally planning improvements at the intersection of Lamar Boulevard and Research Boulevard. TxDOT will add will pedestrian improvements at the intersection, including a new sidewalk and curb improvements. Lane reconfiguration is also planned at the intersection, with TxDOT restriping the lanes to dedicate two left-turn only lanes.

Residents looking for more information on the project are encouraged to visit www.txdot.gov and enter “US 183 from Metric” in the site’s search box. Anyone who wishes to have their comments on the project included in the public record must submit them by Oct. 4. They can also mail them to TxDOT Austin District, P.O.Box 15426, Austin, Texas 78761-5426, Attn: Shelly Eason.