Upcoming RM 620 repaving and 5 other transportation updates to know in Northwest Austin
The Texas Department of Transportation has a busy year planned in the Northwest Austin area.
Work continues on the I-35 project between Rundberg Lane and Hwy. 290. Once temperatures start warming up overnight, the department also plans to repave two sections of RM 620. Read more on those two projects and four other local projects in the area.
RM 620 repaving
The Texas Department of Transportation is planning to repave RM 620 from the Mansfield Dam to RM 2222 and from Anderson Mill Road to SH 45 N at US 183. The project was let for construction in January, and work is slated to begin once temperatures are warmer overnight. Construction will take four months to complete.
Timeline: mid-2018
Cost: $1.48 million
Funding source: TxDOT
Northern Walnut Creek Trail
The city will start construction in mid-April to build the last 2,000 feet of the first phase of the Northern Walnut Creek Trail in Balcones District Park. The project includes building a 10-foot-wide concrete hike and bike trail as well as 200 feet of sidewalk, retaining walls and stormwater facilities. During construction, residents can expect to see a staging area for construction off Scribe Drive with two construction entrances off Scribe and Amherst drives. Access to the baseball field will be temporarily restricted off Stony Drive. The trail also will be closed once construction begins. Design work wraps up this spring on Phase 2 that would extend the trail to I-35. Construction will occur in 2019.
Timeline: mid-April-October 2018
Cost: $610,484
Funding source: city of Austin bonds
I-35 construction
Work began in January on the I-35 from Rundberg Lane to US 290 East project. Nightly I-35 main lane closures are occurring in both directions to install traffic barriers. Activities such as excavation, drilling for shafts, and clearing TxDOT right of way are occurring so crews can work on the new flyovers at US 183. The St. Johns Avenue bridge reconstruction is expected to begin this summer.
Timeline: January 2018-2021
Cost: $124.2 million
Funding source: TxDOT
Spicewood Springs Road upgrades
Staffers are reviewing public comments to use community input to identify $17 million in improvements for the two-lane roadway from west of Mesa Drive to Loop 360. The 2016 bond provided $17 million for improvements on Spicewood Springs Road.
Timeline: fall 2019-2020
Cost: $17 million
Funding sources 2016 mobility bond
Anderson Mill Road improvements
Design and permitting on proposed improvements to Anderson Mill Road from Spicewood Parkway to US 183 will continue through 2020. Work will include extending the right-turn lane at Anderson Mill Road and US 183, adding continuous shared-use paths along both sides of the road and adding new center left-turn lanes.
Timeline: 2020-21
Cost: $7.26 million
Funding sources: 2016 mobility bond, other city funds
Red Line Trail planning
The city plans to host a second public meeting before completing a preliminary engineering report this summer on the Red Line Trail from Braker Lane to the Capital Metro Kramer station and the Northern Walnut Creek Trail system.
Timeline: 2020-22
Cost: $5 million
Funding sources: 2016 mobility bond, other city funds