Roads

Virginia Parkway widening The city will widen Virginia Parkway between US 75 and Ridge Road from four lanes to six lanes. From US 75 to Bellegrove Drive, the roadway will be widened to the edge of the existing pavement.From Bellegrove to Ridge, the roadway will be widened within the existing median. Construction is scheduled to begin in January upon completion of right of way acquisition and franchise utility relocation. Timeline and cost information is not yet available.

Top projects for 2016

• A top project for the city this year will be the expansion of Lake Forest Drive to the north. The city is planning to widen Lake Forest from Wilmeth Road to Bloomdale Road from two lanes to four lanes and reconstruct a portion of Bloomdale east of the intersection. Construction is set to begin sometime this year. Estimated timeline: N/A • The reconstruction and widening of Custer Road to the north from US 380 to FM 1461 will also be a top project for the city. Crews plan to reconstruct and widen the roadway to four lanes, which will ultimately grow to six lanes. Crews will also realign the north end of the project at FM 1461. The design is planned to be complete in 2017. Construction funding has not been budgeted. Estimated timeline: N/A • Construction of additional lanes of Lake Forest Drive continues to be a top priority for the city of McKinney. The project will allow for more vehicles per day on the roadway traffic time in the area. The project is currently under construction and is set to wrap this summer. Estimated timeline: November 2015-June 2016

Buses

Public transportation The end of the year proved eventful for city of McKinney transportation as the city officially moved on from its sole public transportation provider Texoma Area Paratransit System in December. Since that time, the city has been working with the North Central Texas Council of Governments to contract with another public transportation service provider. Those dependent upon public transportation for medical appointments have not had any service within the city since late November. When the city faced this issue before, NCTCOG provided funding for taxi service for non-emergency medical trips. City Manager Tom Muehlenbeck said if NCTCOG provided the city with taxi service for those riders, NCTCOG would only pay for half of the fees and the service would not be instituted until the of January. By that time, Muehlenbeck said he hopes the city will be able to announce their next provider but said it would only be for nonemergency medical transportation. Collin County has also moved away from TAPS. At the Nov. 30 TAPS board meeting, Collin County Commissioner Chris Hill resigned from his position as TAPS board chairman, and within two days, both McKinney TAPS representatives—council members Chuck Branch and Randy Pogue—had followed suit. Hill, who stepped in as chairman after being asked to do so in October, said TAPS failed in its most central responsibilities: to serve the citizens of Collin County with excellence and to carefully guard public assets and resources. Hill said the organization is facing mounting debt, including $1.7 million owed to the Texas Department of Transportation as well as additional debt owed to the state’s Health and Human Services Commission. During his resignation, Hill told the board he would immediately ask that Collin County seek another transportation provider. The following week, TAPS discontinued all service within Collin County, calling the county’s operations “an undue burden” to the agency and the county commissioners canceled their contract with TAPS. For information on this developing story, visit www.mckinneytexas.org.