The move marks completion of the Mud Creek bridge, opening access under the bridge for the Salado Creek Greenway connector. The temporary crossing at Buckhorn Drive, put in by the city of San Antonio in 2012, is no longer in use - the signals have already been removed.
Crews are now working on the center median barrier - a concrete barrier dividing eastbound traffic from cars on the westbound side. That barrier already exists for most of the parkway between Wetmore and Jones-Maltsberger, but the glaring need was to build east of Mud Creek. Once that median is finished the final layer of asphalt will be placed.
Final asphalt surface is typically the last major work to be done on any project, allowing traffic to use the new road while minor tasks are finished. Right now we have the concrete median, final asphalt surface and electrical work to complete.
Project bosses are saying traffic will be using the full length of the new parkway between Jones-Maltsberger and Wetmore before Halloween.
The segment between West Avenue and Jones-Maltsberger is still on pace for completion mid-2015. Crews are focusing work on the U.S. 281 corridor, particularly on the southbound side. September 6 crews with Williams Brothers Construction will close the right lane of U.S. 281 to set barrier. That barrier will provide a safe work zone for crews building new exit and entrance ramps between Bitters Road and Nakoma Drive.
Major closures on 281 to complete the overpass are not expected until later this year.