Crews continue to work on railroad quiet zone crossings in Round Rock. (Taylor Jackson Buchanan/Community Impact Newspaper)
Crews continue to work on railroad quiet zone crossings in Round Rock. (Taylor Jackson Buchanan/Community Impact Newspaper)
ONGOING PROJECTS
Railroad quiet zones
Construction includes city of Round Rock and Union Pacific railroad work at street and railroad intersections. Crossings are being brought up to compliance with federal standards regarding quiet zone requirements. Crossings are electronically controlled by the train, which triggers traffic signals and clears the tracks of motorists. Union Pacific has installed signals at A) Burnet Street and B) St. Williams Street, though both are currently inactive.
Status: Phase 1—quiet zones along C) Burnet to CR 172—is delayed, and Union Pacific may need additional changes made to the plan; Phase 2—D) Burnet to Red Bud Lane—is progressing, and crews are currently working on Hwy. 79 railroad crossing
Cost: $4 million (budgeted), $400,000 Texas Department of Transportation grant (safety improvements)
Funding source: budgeted, TxDOT
McNeil Road extension, Phase 2
The project will act as a bypass for downtown Round Rock, allowing traffic to flow more smoothly and reducing travel times and collisions. Phase 2 of the project will extend the roadway from Burnet Street to Georgetown Street.
Status: construction began the final week of August and is expected to last nine to 10 months
Timeline: August-May/June 2020
Cost: $3 million
Funding source: budgeted/Type B
RECENT UPDATES
I-35 improvements from RM 1431 to FM 3406, northbound
The project is designed to improve safety and mobility on I-35’s northbound frontage road as well as its exit ramp between RM 1431 and FM 3406. Work on the expanded frontage road will widen it from two to three lanes, relocate the exit ramp and add an extended exit lane between RM 1431 and FM 3406.
Status: crews are completing utility work, starting work on expanding frontage road over Chandler Creek to widen from two to three lanes
Timeline: July-late 2020
Cost: $10.4 million
Funding sources: Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, TxDOT
UPCOMING PROJECTS
RM 620 improvements
The city of Round Rock, Williamson County and TxDOT are partnering on the RM 620 project, which will feature improvements from Deep Wood Drive to I-35. The project will add frontage road lanes as well as construct a bridge over the railroad crossing at Chisholm Trail Road and add a roundabout underneath the bridge. To help maintain access to businesses and residential spaces in the area, access roads will be built between Lake Creek Drive and Chisholm Trail Road. A second bridge will be constructed to carry RM 620 traffic over Lake Creek Drive.
Status: TxDOT let the project for bidding in August
Timeline: anticipated to begin construction late fall
Cost: $40 million
Funding sources: TxDOT, Williamson County, city of Round Rock
