Interstate 35 braided ramps in Round Rock opened to traffic
Commissioner recites original poem praising improved driver safety.
Drivers on Interstate 35 in Round Rock may get some traffic relief with new braided ramps that opened last week.
The braided ramps, where one ramp crosses over the other, stretch along the northbound I-35 main lanes between Hesters Crossing and RM 620.
Terry McCoy, Texas Department of Transportation Austin district engineer, said the project, which began in 2016, addresses a major bottleneck where Texas 45 North merges with I-35. He said nearly 177,000 vehicles travel the segment of I-35 daily.
The $28.1 million project also entailed reconstructing north and southbound intersections of U.S. 79 and I-35 frontage roads to add a third left-turn lane for westbound U.S. 79. Bicycle and pedestrian enhancements are being completed.
Round Rock and Williamson County officials, including Williamson County Commissioner Terry Cook, Mayor Craig Morgan and Capital Area Metro Planning Organization Chairman Will Conley, gathered Wednesday morning for a ribbon cutting ceremony on one of the ramps to celebrate the project’s completion. Guests wore hardhats and reflective vests for protection in the active construction zone.
“There’s no more focus in our region than the obvious issue of I-35 and CAMPO is focused on that in a very strategic way,” Conley told guests.
Cook recited an original poem, “Over, Under, Around and Thru,” about the woes of I-35 and how the ramps will bring relief to drivers.
“This design planned to give us collision reduction,” she read. “Gone will be visual arcs, merging frenzies, rapid lanes slides and frantic braking.”
Cook said the ramps will alleviate traffic congestion and prevent merging conflicts along the busy corridor.
“There’s too many cars going too fast trying to occupy the same space, and from physics we know that doesn’t work. So this is critical,” she said. “This should both relieve congestion and for the people who want to be on (U.S.) 79 and (RM) 620, and will be so much safer for them.”
McCoy said the braided ramps, which consist of 150-foot-long beams weighing 150,000 pounds, will eliminate weaving on I-35 and increase the merging distance for the Texas 45 North northbound flyover to I-35, where traffic backs up during peak travel hours.
Morgan said the project will also help increase safety for drivers.
“In Round Rock we have about $70 million that are dedicated from TxDOT that’s either under construction or will be in the pipeline for future construction,” he said. “I-35 for the city of Round Rock, and along this corridor, is the greatest challenge for us and our economic prosperity.”