I-69 work to cause ramp closures

There may be no rain in the forecast, but roadwork at Interstate 69 and Loop 610 will make driving there just as unpleasant this weekend.

After nixing a weekend of work last week, officials on Tuesday said long-term closures of two crucial ramps at the freeway interchange in Uptown will take place. The hassles start at 9 p.m. Thursday when workers close the ramp from northbound I-69 to northbound Loop 610.

That will be followed by a 56hour closing of I-69 in both directions, starting at 9 p.m. Friday. Northbound traffic on I-69 will be forced onto Loop 610 southbound, where drivers can exit, U-turn and return. Southbound traffic will be forced off I-69 at Newcastle, where the short exit is likely to back up onto the freeway, potentially impacting traffic at earlier exits at Edloe and Buffalo Speedway.

The freeway will open in both directions by 5 a.m. Monday, according to the Texas Department of Transportation, which is overseeing a $263 million rebuild of the interchange.

Construction comes with a hearty warning to drivers to detour or plan for trips through the area, as various frontage roads and streets in the area are likely to be jammed by displaced freeway traffic.

The final closing comes Monday night, when the southbound I-69 ramp to northbound Loop 610 closes at 9 p.m.

The connections to northbound Loop 610 will not reopen for months, as crews demolish the ramps and build their replacements in the same spots. Access from southbound I-69 is expected to return by late 2021, TxDOT officials said. The new northbound I-69 ramp is scheduled to open in early 2022.

Drivers, many preparing to return to work in the Uptown area, have the said the closings fill them with dread, with some predictions of severely strained local streets for the rest of the year.