FM 1560 Widening Project: Upcoming Traffic Switch

 We are continuing to make progress on the FM 1560 (Hausman) strip between SH 16 (Bandera) and LP 1604. As you may have noticed, the north side of the project is near completion. Looking over the work zone barrier, you will be able to see a fresh, smooth blacktop surface with new curb and sidewalk.  

It’s time the contractor turns their attention to the south side of the project. In order to do so, traffic must be switched to the newly paved surface between Magnolia Way and LP 1604 as highlighted in the image below.

The traffic switch will take place on Monday, August 24^th.

Necessary improvements to the underground storm networks along the centerline of the roadway force us to eliminate the continuous left turn lane within those limits. 

However, you would miss it only temporarily. The contractor predicts that the opening of a continuous left turn lane would follow this change within a month and a half.  

We do understand the inconvenience eliminating the continuous left turn lane would cause. We have taken proactive measures and brainstormed all plausible alternatives but have concluded that it is the fastest and safest option moving forward for both the contractor and public.

Please note that this switch is weather permitting and subject to change.

Traffic counts to be collected on SH 16 (Bandera Road)

Where are the cars coming from and where are they going on SH 16 (Bandera Road) between I-410 and Loop 1604? These are questions that the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is answering as the agency kicks off a new study to review possible improvements along SH 16 (Bandera Road) between I-410 and Loop 1604. 

Traffic counting equipment and survey crews will be seen along the corridor starting in December 2018. 

TxDOT is working closely with officials from the cities of Leon Valley and San Antonio to study congestion within the project corridor. Earlier this year, the City of San Antonio announced plans to study land use and economic development opportunities along SH 16 (Bandera Road) in a separate effort as part of the SA Tomorrow Corridor Plan. 

According to the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, the 6.5-mile stretch of SH 16 (Bandera Road) between I-410 and Loop 1604 is the 8th most congested road in the region and one of the top 100 most congested in the State of Texas. 

For ongoing TxDOT project updates, community members are invited to email their names and contact information to BanderaRoad@pozcam.com or contact the TxDOT Public Information Office at Laura.Lopez@txdot.gov or (210) 615-5839.

Mail Bag: The Binz-Engleman exit ramp, Transguide cameras, Displaced Left Turns and more

Any word on when the Transguide cameras at Loop 1604 and Stone Oak/Huebner/NW Military will be brought back online? I was really glad when these cameras were installed, since the congestion gets pretty bad in that area, but they've been down for several months now.
P.S. Thanks for all the great updates recently! Y'all are on a roll.
- Chris
Glad you like what we're doing - we're excited about the fiber optic wire and the wireless cameras going into our equipment and what that upgrade means to the system.
These cameras are actually a priority item for our guys at Transguide. The ITS pole controlling those cameras was hit by lightning back in April, destroying the radio transmitter and several other equipment items. We also lost a link in our wireless communications chain in the process.
We've ordered the surge suppressor which (hopefully) will arrive in the next several days. We're working to get the cables all inspected for lightning damage as well - it's a process! We hope to have things up and running again shortly.

Regarding the Loop1604 N-Bandera Rd area, I saw in the TIP a displaced left turn at that intersection - expect funding soon? Braun Rd/Bandera to 1604 eligible for state funding or identified future project. I asked COSA TCI and they are not aware of any project.
- Edward
Great questions. A couple of answers.

We'll talk first of the DLT (Displaced Left Turn) we're doing at the intersection of Bandera Road and Loop 1604. That's a project we should put out for bids next month. The $6.5 million project is something you'll see us post more about here in the next few weeks as we look to push the message of what a DLT does and  how it will help congestion at this location. By the way, this isn't the only location we're eyeing for a DLT; other candidate intersections include Culebra Road at Lp 1604, where we have growing significant issues with congestion and limited options due to the tight spaces out there.
As for improvements along Bandera between Braun Road and Loop 1604 ... we're still working toward that. We want to do something that makes sense and addresses the major needs of the Bandera Road corridor (now a top-10 spot in the area in terms of congestion woes), and we cannot do that without working on the entire corridor between I-410 and Lp 1604. We're hoping, right now, to get something going by 2022 - a date that can easily be changed in the TIP as our stakeholders can find a proper solution and we identify proper funding.
Whatever we do along Bandera, it'll focus on multimodal solutions.

Recently Exit 30 on the southbound lanes of Loop 410 was closed after the opening of the new right-hand exit from southbound I-35. I work in the Macro Prologis business park and now all the businesses on the east side of Loop 410 have to make protracted detours to get to our work destinations.
There seems to be no urgency by the contractor to open the exit or to even provide a temporary exit ramp for this area. Any idea when that exit ramp will be reopened?
- Ed
We are working on it, Ed ... some of the work is weather-dependent and we've had some logistical challenges thrown our way.
The ramp was closed because the elevation of the new direct connector (southbound I-35 to southbound I-410) didn't match the elevation of the existing Binz-Engleman exit ramp. We knew that'd be the case when we went in there, and it's something our communications team missed when we put forward info on the weekend closures that put the new connector into service.
Bottom line: we should have that ramp (exit 30) back in action next month. In the interim, the best route to take would be southbound I-35 exit to George Beach, turn left at George Beach and again onto the northbound frontage road. Follow the frontage road around the hairpin turn and that should get you where you need to go. Take a look at the route here.

Just wanted to say thanks for getting those signs up at the Shin Oak Park and Ride! The commercial vehicles are gone. I appreciate not having to look at a "truck stop" anymore when I drive by!
- Steven
Happy to help, Steven! Thanks for reaching out on the topic and letting us know of the issue.

I wrote in previously about the barrier at the 1604 Bandera Rd northbound exit and how it has been repeatedly destroyed since it was first installed. The answer I got was that people are distracted and need to pay better attention. I completely agree. Another person later wrote in that these distracted people should have to pay to fix barriers/guardrails. Again, I completely agree and I’m glad TxDOT has a process in place to seek reimbursement for such repairs.
What I’m asking is if there is someone at TxDOT who looks at high recurrence accident locations to see what might be done to help save life and property. I’m certainly no expert, but the way the exit lane is striped at the northbound Bandera exit off 1604 seems to point cars directly at the barrier. People hit it because they are not paying close enough attention and they should pay to get it fixed - got it - but if the discussion stops there, an opportunity is missed. All I’m asking for is some TxDOT engineer to take a really good look at the off-ramp trajectory and consider if re-striping it might help drivers (distracted or otherwise) better avoid the barrier. For the possibility of fewer accidents, fewer TxDOT repairs, and less work chasing reimbursements, it’s worth a look.
- Bob
Well, you'll get no argument out of us, Bob.
When areas are riddled with crashes we do evaluate the road and see what, if anything, can be done to improve the situation. This is generally prompted by abnormal volumes of work orders to clean up or repair things like crash attenuators, which means we've got an idea as to the frequency of crashes at any given location.
We won't wait for the work orders to pile up here, though, Bob. Our communications team has a note to our traffic operations folks to look at this location again. They'll address the issue as appropriate and keep an eye out there on it.

Mail Bag: Bandera Rd intersection, UTSA Boulevard

Please make your formal presentation available on your blog regarding the displaced left turn at Bandera road. The video doesn't really explain what we can expect to happen. I'm particularly interested in what impact it will have on 1604. I saw traffic lights on the video and the last thing we need is lights on 1604!
- Mike
The video to which you referred was a representative video of the basic concept of what we're doing, and was linked in our previous post on this topic. Let's be clear, Mike, for you and for your neighbors: we are not adding a traffic signal to the main lanes of Loop 1604. We're spending (literally) hundreds of millions of dollars to build overpasses. Adding a signal at the heart of where traffic congestion on Lp 1604 is the worst would be, well, a qualifier as the worst idea ever. We know that, which is why we wouldn't ever do that.
What is not the worst idea ever is looking at intersections like Bandera Road and Loop 1604 for new traffic innovations. These intersections are prime candidates for intersection designs we're seeing pop up across the country, like the diverging diamond intersection (or DDI, already used by North Carolina, Washington, Missouri, Utah, Florida and Michigan, and now used in Texas up in Round Rock).
Right now, though, we're looking at a displaced left turn intersection, or a DLT. These come with a ton of minor variations, as the FHWA shows. The major difference between a DDI and a DLT is in the number of lanes being diverted and removed from the equation of the intersection. With the DDI all lanes of the primary road are being diverted. With the DLT, we're only moving the left-turn lanes around. To be clear, in this application we're talking about Bandera Road as it crosses through the Lp 1604 frontage road intersections. We are not messing with the Lp 1604 main lanes. Here's a look from that presentation:

By the way, we've got a DLT just like the one we're talking about for Bandera Road working up in San Marcos. To your request, Mike, here's the full presentation for you. Let us know if you have further questions!


How about an update on Spur 53 expansion?
- Zane
It's probably easiest to cut right to the point: we're on pace to wrap up this summer. That's summer 2017, for those who like when we get super specific. It's also right on par with the anticipated completion date we had when we started out, so that's good.
Our section goes from I-10 to Ximenes, so the city's segment may still be working after we're finished. For now on our end we've got some concrete work remaining, and the last major thing we'll be doing is a final asphalt surface. When you see that happening you'll know we're knocking on the door of that completion date.


I’m new to San Antonio (from California) and have a challenging time figuring out the roads here. As I drive to appointments it is very frustrating when approaching an intersection not being able to find a sign identifying the cross street name. In California, when approaching an intersection, especially where there is a traffic signal, there is usually a cross street name sign located in the middle island at least 500 feet prior to reaching the intersection. Secondly, I live in the Alamo Ranch area and concerned about the Alamo Ranch Parkway (ARP) off-ramp from Westbound 1604. There is not enough road to first merge into the frontage road travel lanes, then cross over the multiple lanes of traffic to make a very hard right turn onto ARP. When drivers are bombing up the frontage road from Culebra it is extremely dangerous to cross-over and make a safe right turn. Why is there not a dedicated fly-over from 1604 to ALR?
Sorry, frontage roads are dangerous and this is coming from someone who has safely driven in Los Angeles for many years.
- Joan
Hi, Joan. Welcome to Texas! You're among the 1,000 people who move to Texas every day ... a trend that's continued for more than half a decade. You seem to have brought up three separate issues, so let's dig in.
We have cross street signs posted at each major intersection. These are often on the signal mast arms or span wires. Keep in mind we only control state-maintained roads. City roads may be a little different, though generally they follow the same pattern we do. The way this is set out is dictated in part by our Texas Manual for Uniform Traffic Control Devices, which can be read in its entirety here.
We do have some advanced-warning signs of major cross-streets along our highway frontage roads, and at times along our arterials. This isn't done for every cross street, but is typically reserved for major intersections. We try to minimize the number of signs out there to manage the risk of information overload. We've found drivers start tuning out signs when there are too many.
As for the frontage roads ... they're a distinctly Texas thing, aren't they? They take some doing to get used to, but if you remember to merge onto them the way you do an expressway you'll be fine. Most folks are pretty good about yielding right-of-way (where appropriate) to the exiting traffic, or letting you find a good merge point when you've got your own auxiliary lane coming off the expressway.
That Alamo Ranch Parkway question is multi-faceted, though. Adding a direct connector, besides costing a ton of extra money we don't have (those things are like $75 million apiece right now!), would have complicated an already frustrating situation at the intersection of ARP and Westwood Loop. Exiting Loop 1604 to get there isn't all that rough, though. The frontage road speed limit is 45 miles per hour, and you've got nearly a half-mile between that ramp and the ARP turnoff, and that far-right lane of the frontage road is a turn-only lane onto ARP.


A note about Hwy 151, Alamo Ranch Pkwy and Westwood Loop. I know you are in the process of adding a light and have installed a barrier so there are no right turns from 151 to Westwood Loop, people are still making that right turn in front of the cars from 1604 lanes almost causing an accident. I saw two cars in a row do that. You need a sign on the light to state NO RIGHT TURN from the 151 lanes. People nowadays have no common sense or know traffic laws.
- Jackie
Thank you for working the issues at ARP & Westwood Lp. Now that the paddles are up, another more dangerous issue is occurring. Every third driver coming off 151 into AR is still turning despite the paddles, crossing in front of drivers in the straight lane. Dangerous collisions almost occur daily! Can you get a Sheriff to issue tickets? Something needs to be done! Thank you.
- Roger 
Jackie and Roger, your neighbor Carolyn also wrote in with this issue. Several others have reached out via Twitter. Some have understood the real problem is the driver behavior - which is absolutely the worst reflection on our great city. Others have tried to remove the shared responsibility by blaming roadway designers for causing these terrible drivers to make poor choices and violate laws. Such an approach is absolutely flabbergasting, but we'll leave that issue alone.

The signals are being built by Bexar County Public Works. We understand the county's contractor will be putting up lane designation signs as they get that project finished. We've also been working with the Bexar County Sheriff's Office to improve enforcement. It's ridiculous the delineators haven't solved this issue, and flabbergasting to our staff the way drivers have treated this intersection. Hopefully, despite the selfishness and impatience of drivers like the ones you're seeing (folks like the those driving this white car photographed by Kimberley's passenger this weekend), signs and signals and enforcement will help curb this issue once and for all.


What are they doing on Potranco by Granite Cliff and Seascape? I see cones everywhere but no activity. They even closed off middle lane to merge. Help!
-Ani
You should be seeing regular activity, daily activity. If not we'll be yelling at someone something fierce! The short answer to this question: we're adding a center concrete median barrier. In short, we're doing on Potranco what we've already done on Culebra Road between Lp 1604 and Tezel Road.


Braun Road is currently closed between Tezel Road and Old Tezel Road. How long will the road be closed? When should construction finish?
-Bryan
Great questions. Frankly, we don't have an answer - Braun Road is a city road and we don't monitor the progress of development there. Call the folks with San Antonio TCI and they should be able to help you.


What is the bridge that is going up on I-10 and Buckskin Dr going to be for?
- Tereri 
We're adding a new overpass! Here's some more information on the overall project, and a post about the project as it got started.


Can you please have someone observing for potholes caused by the big trucks and have them filled.
- Jennifer 
We're committed to addressing pavement failures as soon as we're aware of them; we do not, however, employ folks to drive around looking for potholes. We simply don't think that would be a wise way to spend your tax money - we can find more productive things for our staff members to do. If you have specific locations for potholes, let us know and we'll have our folks go check them out immediately.

Public meeting upcoming: Bandera Rd at Lp 1604

One of the trickier things we get to do is find a solution to intersections that are simply overloaded with traffic. One of those intersections is Bandera Road at Loop 1604.

Well, we've got a plan for this intersection. Honestly, the plan is a bit tough to describe here on a blog (it's called a displaced left turn) so we hope you'll come out to see what we're hoping to do during an open house presentation Thursday night. Here are the details:

• Thursday, Oct. 27, between 6 and 8 p.m. (come as you're able; we won't have a formal presentation but will have tables set up with engineers available for questions).
• O'Connor High School cafeteria ... that's at 12221 Leslie Road in Helotes.
• Discussion of proposed plans to address congestion issues on Bandera Road at Lp 1604; please let us know what you think. Your input can impact what will actually happen there.

In the meantime, take a look at this video showing a similar intersection improvement on I-35 in San Marcos ... then come to the meeting ready to ask questions!