Major Interstate 35 Traffic Shift Planned This Weekend: TxDot

AUSTIN, TX — The Texas Department of Transportation is planning a major traffic shift as part of an Interstate 35 project from Rundberg Lane to US 290 East this weekend, officials said on Wednesday.

The traffic shift will begin on Friday, May 31, at 9 p.m. and remain in place until Monday, June 3, at 5 a.m. TxDOT crews will demolish half of the St. Johns Avenue bridge and set beams for one of the new flyovers at US 183. A second traffic shift is planned for June 28 – July 1, weather permitting.

Drivers are encouraged to seek alternate routes, as major delays are expected while traffic is reduced to two lanes in each direction and shifted to the northbound side of I-35. TxDot officials have scheduled a Thursday news conference at 2:30 p.m. at their Austin District headquarters to discuss the traffic shift in greater detail.

The proposed improvements associated with this project include:

• Providing direct connectors between: I-35 southbound (SB) to US 183 SB; US 183 northbound (NB) to I-35 NB; and I-35 SB to US 183 northbound.
• Adding dedicated lanes to the I-35 frontage road to bypass the St. Johns Avenue intersection.
• Replacing the existing St. Johns Avenue Bridge over I-35 to provide two lanes in each direction with a center turn lane as well as U-turn bridges in each direction.
• Modifying the I-35 northbound to US 183 northbound direct connector.
• Providing bicycle and pedestrian facilities along the frontage roads.

Graphic courtesy of Texas Department of Transportation.