Loop 1604 at I-10 will close this weekend
The goal of the Loop 1604 expansion project is to cut congestion, but motorists will be facing a snarl of traffic the next few weekends as the Texas Department of Transportation shuts down the highway at the North Side interchange with Interstate 10.
The closures are needed so that crews can install 20 steel beams in preparation for building flyover ramps, TXDOT said in a news release.
“Drivers are encouraged to plan an alternate route and avoid the area, if possible,” TXDOT said. The closure is scheduled to start at 9 p.m. Friday and last through 5 a.m. Monday, weather permitting.
1604 closure details
This weekend’s work means “a full closure of westbound and eastbound Loop 1604 at the I-10 interchange,” TXDOT said. To be precise, that means closing:
• All four cloverleafs at the interchange
• Loop 1604 main lanes at the interchange, both east- and westbound
• Loop 1604 east- and westbound frontage roads at the interchange
• Loop 1604 east- and westbound collector-distributors
• I-10 westbound frontage road at the interchange.
By the way, collectordistributors are the roads that connect the main lanes of a highway and frontage roads or entrance ramps. They are used at intersections and allow drivers to bypass traffic lights. TXDOT describes them as being similar to but usually longer than an exit ramp.
“This is a full weekend closure and these lanes are expected to remain closed for the full duration. Please note these are the minimum closures required for the anticipated work,” TXDOT said in the release.
The agency also said “additional major closures are currently scheduled for the remaining weekends in April” at the interchange. It will be providing details on what will be closed on a weekly basis “as the work is confirmed.”
1604 detour details
For those who can’t avoid the area, here are the detour details for this weekend’s closure. (law enforcement will be directing traffic):
Those going east on I-10 and heading to eastbound Loop 1604 will get off I-10 using the exit after La Cantera Parkway and take the eastbound I-10 frontage road through the interchange. At UTSA Boulevard, use the Uturn to get on the westbound I-10 frontage road and take it to the Loop 1604 frontage road. Drivers can get on eastbound Loop 1604 using the entrance ramp before Vance Jackson Road.
Drivers heading west on I-10 and planning to go west on Loop 1604 will take the exit at La Cantera Parkway. Stay on the westbound I-10 frontage road to La Cantera Parkway and use the U-turn to get on the eastbound I-10 frontage road. Take that to the westbound Loop 1604 frontage road, getting on the loop using the entrance ramp after Valero Way.
All motorists going east on Loop 1604 will have to get off using the exit ramp after La Cantera Parkway.
Those wanting to get back on eastbound Loop 1604 or get on westbound I-10 will take the eastbound Loop 1604 frontage road to the eastbound I-10 frontage road. Stay on that until the U-turn at UTSA Boulevard and use it to get on the westbound I-10 frontage road. Follow that to get on the eastbound Loop 1604 frontage
road. Drivers wanting to get back on eastbound Loop 1604 will use the entrance ramp before Vance Jackson Road. Those wanting to get to westbound I-10 will use the turnaround at Vance Jackson to get on the westbound Loop 1604 frontage road. Follow the signs for westbound I-10; travelers will get on I-10 using the entrance ramp before La Cantera Parkway.
Everyone going west on Loop 1604 will have to take the exit after Vance Jackson.
Drivers wanting to continue west on Loop 1604 or get on eastbound I-10 will take the westbound Loop 1604 frontage road to the westbound I-10 frontage road. At La Cantera Parkway, use the Uturn to get on the eastbound I-10 frontage road. Those wanting to get back on the loop will turn onto
the westbound Loop 1604 frontage road and use the entrance ramp after Valero Way.
Drivers wanting to get on I-10 will stay on the eastbound I-10 frontage road through the interchange and use the entrance ramp before UTSA Boulevard.
1604 project update
Work on the interchange is part of the Loop 1604 North Expansion, a $1.4 billion project designed to cut congestion and improve safety along a 23-mile stretch of the highway.
There are six segments to the expansion project, which will be adding two general purpose lanes and one high-occupancy vehicle lane in each direction and redoing the intersections at I-10 and Blanco Road, according to TXDOT.
The project also will
add bicycle and pedestrian accommodations along the frontage roads. Work is underway on four of the segments.
In addition to announcing the closures, the TXDOT news release provided an update on the work.
Segment 1: Work on the stretch from Bandera Road to I-10; on track to be finished by early 2025
Segment 2: Replace the cloverleaf ramps at the intersection with I-10 with a five-level direct connect interchange; the first flyover ramp is expected to open by the end of the year, while the entire interchange is on track to be done by 2027
Segment 3: Stretch from I-10 to U.S. 281; on track for completion by the end of 2025
Segment 4: Work began this month on the stretch from U.S. 281 to Redland Road.