TEXAS STATE EDITION
A Supplement to:
®
September 18 2016 Vol. I • No. 19
“The Nation’s Best Read Construction Newspaper… Founded in 1957.” Your Texas Connection • Dale Agnew, Carrollton, TX • 1-877-877-4997
$743M Texas-Sized 12-Lane Superhighway Coming to Austin By Chuck Harvey CEG CORRESPONDENT
Work started this year on a $743 million 183 South Expressway project in Austin that will widen U.S. 183 between U.S. 290 and SH 71 into a Texas-sized 12-lane superhighway. The project was started in April and is expected to be complete in 2020. The 8-mi. (13 km) stretch of highway currently carries about 60,000 vehicles a day. The new highway will handle triple that amount. Three of the lanes in each direction will be toll lanes, while the remaining three lanes will be non-toll lanes. The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority is in charge of the project. It was created in 2002 to improve the transportation system in Travis and Williamson
Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority photo
Crews work on drainage for the U.S. 183 South project near the Manor and Springdale roads overpass.
counties. “The project will triple capacity along an eight-mile section of U.S. 183 between U.S. 290 and SH 71,” said Steve Pustelnyk, director of community relations for the CTRMA. “This is the region’s largest roadway construction project since SH 130 and signifies a major step forward in developing a comprehensive regional transportation system that offers greater mobility, reliable travel times and improved access to affordable housing.” The project was developed in partnership with the Texas Department of Transportation, the city of Austin and Capital Metro. Design-build contractor for the project is Colorado River Constructors joint venture, comprised of Fluor Enterprises Inc. of see SUPERHIGHWAY page 12
Water Project Leads to Padre Island Bridge Concept By Lori Tobias CEG CORRESPONDENT
When the Army Corps of Engineers deemed a new water exchange between Padre Island, Texas, and an old canal system was necessary, the city of Corpus Christi and private developers could have simply gone with culverts. That would have satisfied the need for a water exchange to improve water quality issues. But as talks opened about the requirement for the water exchange, the potential and its impacts became increasingly obvious. Now, instead of a simple culvert, there will be an open canal, two bridges and a pedestrian walk, the impact of which should benefit the area in numerous ways. “The developer suggested the bridge and relocating so it could be elevated and boat traffic could come through,” said Chip Urban, a princi-
pal with Urban Engineering, consultant to the city of Corpus Christi for the project. “The Coast Guard liked it because they would have faster response time to the back of the canal. It is going to be an economic driver that helps development. It will also help people come to the island and get out of their cars and stay out and spend time on the island. It will allow traffic on both sides. In the past, there was traffic on only one side. Elevating the bridge and allowing pedestrians underneath is just much more resort friendly.” The private developer has begun work on the dredging of the canal, and the construction bid for the estimated $10 million bridge is expected to be awarded by the year’s end with completion set for December 2017. The city project involves constructing two bridges, one northbound and the other southsee BRIDGE page 16
The city project involves constructing two bridges, one northbound and the other southbound, over the canal within the existing Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)-owned Park Road 22 right-of-way.