Some roads are getting wider. Traffic signals are being added. A speed limit reduction is planned soon, and raised medians are coming at the end of this month.
Williamson County Precinct 4 Commissioner Russ Boles wants people to know short and long-term solutions to growth-related traffic woes are incoming for eastern Williamson County.
“I know there is a lot of traffic in the area, a lot of construction traffic, and I want to let people know what we have as far as long-term solutions, new roads being constructed, and other things being planned,” Boles said in a recent interview. “And also let them know there are some short-term interim things that will be occurring by the end of the month.”
Short-term
Segment 1 of planned Southeast Loop, which will eventually connect Texas 130 to U.S. 79, is slated to be open by this summer, Boles said.
This $11.7 million project, which began in summer of 2021, involves the construction of a three-lane road along County Road 138 until County Road 137.
“A lot of people from Taylor travel down (FM) 1660 and try to take that, the back way to 130, but that straightens out several bad dog legs,” Boles said. “Traffic can kind of back up here in the morning, and so we are pretty excited to straighten that piece out.”
Another change set for this summer will be a $13.3 million expansion of County Road 401 to four lanes into Samsung Austin Semiconductor Fab site, with a traffic signal planned at its intersection with 79, Boles said.
In addition, raised medians will be added to the intersection of U.S. 79 and FM 3349/101, which will prevent a straight-through movement across the highway, and instead will require right turns and turnarounds a half-mile down the road in each direction.
Signal lights at the turnarounds will also be coming in the next few months, pending approval from the Texas Department of Transportation, which is in charge of the road and is partnering with the county on these projects, Boles said.
“The signal lights are part of the project as well, but working with TxDOT, it takes a little bit to get those approvals, so those are probably coming in a couple of months,” Boles said. “But I want people to know because this is going to be a significant change in the traffic patterns here.”
Construction on Segment 1 of Samsung Highway, which will eventually connect FM 973 to the Southeast Loop with a four-lane road, is underway and slated to be finished by fall 2023. This $11.3 million project will connect 404 to 973 for this first segment.
Segment 2, which will cost $6.3 million and will connect 404 to 3349, is in the design phase and is slated to be completed summer 2024, per county officials.
“That is going to tie into the Southeast Loop,” Boles said. “That is going to get you over to 973 and allow people to move east and west without necessarily having to get on Highway 79, so I think that is going to be a pretty important one as well.”
Long-term
The $82 million construction of Segment 3 of the Southeast Loop is currently underway, Boles said, and will involve building a bridge over 79 and the Union Pacific Railroad tracks, among other improvements, and is slated to be finished by summer 2025, according to the county.
“It’s a significant bridge,” Boles said. “This is going to allow people to cross 79 safely … It’s going to allow buses and first responders to know that they are not going to be cut off by a train, so it’s a pretty important piece.”
Official said Segment 2 of the Loop is not yet funded, but Boles said the county is collecting right-of-way on it and other preparations.
FM 973 improvements
Along FM 973, several projects are in the works that are slated to be completed this fall.
This $4.6 million project will include widening 973 to three lanes, with one lane in each direction and a center turn lane, plus dedicated right-turn lanes into the Samsung facility.
In addition, traffic signals will be added at the intersections of 973 with 404 and Samsung Highway, and the speed limit will be lowered for the construction zone.
“We understand there is a lot of traffic, and a lot of people moving in and out to the site from 973, and it our goal to make it safer for people entering the site (Samsung), and people traveling down 973 as well,” Boles said.
Traffic signal at Taylor High School Boles said the county hopes to install a traffic light at the intersection of 973 and Wesley Miller Lane in the near future.
“This is a TxDOT road, so we have to use TxDOT rules, so it has to meet warrants,” Boles said. “Which means there has to be enough traffic. We are monitoring the traffic constantly, but we are not quite at that level.”
