The project, which was originally part of the DFW Connector project but was unfunded, will add new direct connectors for SH 114, SH 121 and SH 360 that will minimize weaving, reduce congestion and improve safety.
“As someone who drives these roads almost every day, I know how critical this interchange is to mobility in our Metroplex,” state Sen. Jane Nelson said. “We were able to make significant progress in transportation funding last session, and projects like this one will go a long way toward reducing congestion in our region.”
Michael Peters, Texas Department of Transportation public information officer, said the interchange is needed because of current congestion problems.
“Currently there are two major weaving movements that are causing congestion in the area,” he said. “The new direct-connecting ramps will relieve this congestion and will further complete the DFW Connector improvements for this area.”
Peters said not only will the project remove the weaving patterns, but it will also improve safety and mobility near the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and fill unfinished portions left in the DFW Connector that affected mobility.
A year ago, Governor Abbott called on the Texas Transportation Commission to develop a focused initiative to address the most congested chokepoints in Texas. Commissioner J. Bruce Bugg Jr. then met with transportation leaders and elected officials in the state’s five major metropolitan areas. Those listening tours and collaborative efforts with metropolitan planning organizations and TxDOT districts helped shape this initiative.
The project is contracted to finish by January 2019.
Construction on another four projects in the Dallas-Fort Worth area will be underway within the next year on SH 199, the I-820 East Loop and I-35E for a total of $528 million in congestion-relief funding. For information on how TxDOT and local partners are further addressing congestion, visit texasclearlanes.com.
