UPDATE: upcoming work involving closures has been pushed until after New Years due to the wet weather forecast. New work schedule will be announced early January.
If you're talking with our guys on the project please don't mention the word inlet - it's become profanity of on this project. Whether the issue be with fabrication or installation, drain inlets have been a single consistent challenge on this project.
Because of some of these challenges on the south end of the project we are going to close - completely - North Austin between Seideman and Railroad. This will allow Curran to reconstruct the road and reposition some of the inlets in the area, correcting the issues causing problems for us right now.
Oh, yeah ... it would be helpful to know the timeframe of that full closure. Well, we plan to take advantage of the school holiday so we won't need to reroute Seguin ISD school buses. Curran will shut things down the morning of Monday, December 18 and will reopen the road by close of business Friday, December 22.
If we tried to do this work without the full closure we'd end up trying to finish it out with weekend closures through the month of January. This more aggressive approach allows us to save some time on the work and get down to business. Back in October we said we'd be all done with one-way traffic on this job forever. We're still on pace to make good on that promise. Curran is laying asphalt on the northbound side of the road and has just a couple of inches remaining before we can swap lanes over and work on the southbound side.
All told we're eying a completion date in early 2019. Yes, that's about six months after we had initially expected. Delays involving those cursed inlets and some box culverts have pushed work back and contributed to some fairly significant delays on work.
And now ... time for some quick looks at the job:
Paving crews lay asphalt base for the new road. The elevation difference between the old road and new road should be fairly evident; the old road surface is about even with the workers' waistline as they lay asphalt.
This stretch of northbound Austin Street still needs a good two inches of asphalt before it's ready for traffic.
Box culverts and inlets continue to be a challenge on the project, but the challenge is being met by project staff head-on.
Inlet woes continue to plague the job, but TxDOT staff has worked with Curran to develop workable solutions and get this job finished with relative speed.
Up to now most of the work along North Austin Street (Business 123) in Seguin has been about installing drain systems and moving around utilities. This is the least flashy part of any type of road construction, and often the more disruptive. The specialized crews are often smaller and work is typically done only in a few spots at a time. Despite the appearance of sporadic work it's kept the road to a one-way road since work got started back in 2016.
The good news is all that messy stuff is part of the drawn-out early phases of the project. Curran Contracting is about ready to move into the more visible road construction phases. They do have some storm drains still to install - notably along Seidmann Street just west of North Austin - but are pretty much focusing on the actual road bed. They've already had some dirt crews getting the road bed ready by cutting the dirt down to the right elevation, but weather over the last several weeks has slowed production considerably. When you're trying to work with and stabilize dirt, a good rain pushes work back several days - crews have to wait for the ground to dry out completely to get good work done. As soon as dry weather clears out the moisture in the dirt, Curran will lime treat the subgrade. After the lime treatment is finished, the subgrade will be cement treated. If weather holds all this should be wrapped up right about the time we're all tucked away for our long winter's nap.
About the beginning of 2018 you'll see asphalt on the road. On top of the 18 inches of dirt subgrade we are placing at least eight inches of asphalt. We want this road to last a while! When we start laying asphalt we can open lanes back up to two-way traffic on the new pavement.
Let's say that again, another way.
One-way traffic is expected to be over, forever, in January. We will still have work to do, but your greatest inconveniences will be done. And for those who forgot what this $5.3 million project will look like when we're all done, here you go (click to enlarge):
Though dirt hasn't been pushed around much since May 2 work is continuing to progress on the North Austin Street expansion in the city of Seguin. Residents can expect to see more activity along the developing road mid-July. Overall project scope
This $5.3 million project adds a continuous center left-turn lane, wider shoulders to accommodate bicycle traffic and sidewalks to accommodate pedestrians. We're also upgrading the storm drain system. The overall project should wrap up by next fall (2018). Our contractor is the Curran Contracting Company of Converse, and the project is overseen by CP&Y in Austin.
A quick look at the final product ... click on the image to enlarge.
The hold-up(s)
Curran didn't expect to see a duct bank encased in concrete like this under the road.
Several weeks ago our contractor unexpectedly ran into a duct bank with 16 conduits encased within. As part of the project we're working on the roadway elevation is dropping, and the duct bank interferes with the foundation of what will be the new roadway. The duct bank was removed May 2 and utilities are being relocated. This work is primarily taking place on weekends due to required closures to make this happen. Later this month we should be able to start working through the week as well as the major closures will no longer be required.
The subbase course of the road sets on the subgrade which needed additional chemical stabilization along Austin Street.
Our consultant (CP&Y) also discovered a different chemical makeup than planned for in the dirt under the road bed. Our engineers have been redesigning the roadway foundation mix (called subgrade) to accommodate. That work is being finalized in our labs and drawing rooms.
Finally, some issues surrounding the storm drain structures we are installing cropped up. The good news is we caught them early in the project and quickly got a solution; the bad news is the manufacturer making the storm drain boxes has a backlog of orders and we are six weeks from having the storm drain structures on site.
Getting started again
Rest assured we are not allowing work to go undone. We are pushing hard to get the administrative work done while the field work is resting. When the storm drain materials arrive in July we expect work to move rapidly. Curran has worked on similar projects in town before - some very recently - and has good experience advancing the project rapidly.
We do not take the inconvenience this important project imposes on residents, particularly those living along this busy corridor, or others in the community lightly. We are exerting all efforts to minimizing and eliminating additional burdens where we can. We're also looking at the work schedule to identify ways we can accelerate this project to deliver the project without delays despite the hiccup we're encountering today.
Friday we will open a new frontage road along the westbound lanes of I-10 between Texas Highway 46 and Farm to Market 464 in Seguin, making an easier commute for many who live, work or play along this corridor.
The road will be open in time for the afternoon commute.
Though most of the frontage road is one-way, a small segment on each end of the frontage road will permit two-way traffic. These two-way segments will run between Friesenhahn Road and Highway 46 on the east end, and between the westbound exit to FM 464 and FM 464 itself on the west end.
The frontage road, built by Angel Brothers Construction, was paid for entirely by local funds. The city of Seguin and the Seguin Economic Development Corporation combined for some $2.5 million of the project cost, and commercial developer NewQuest Properties contributed another $2.5 million. Work began in October 2013.
Honestly, this is a fantastic example of the department working with others to provide transportation infrastructure. A huge kudos to the local partners who have posted the funds to make this project happen.
Private commercial development along the frontage is expected to begin shortly, led by the folks at NewQuest. Ten driveway points were included along the frontage road to facilitate this development.
The biggest disadvantage to being the sole poster for an organizational blog like this is when that sole poster is out of town (or state) for a period of time, the posts stop altogether.
So, apologies for going dark over the last three weeks. To get us back up and running, and to get everyone on the same page again, we'll start with a (really long) post about projects beyond the city of San Antonio. So, if you're here to read about projects in Kendall, Guadalupe or Comal county, enjoy.
FM 1101
The Texas Transportation Commission in April approved funds for a contract to expand FM 1101 on the northeast side of New Braunfels.
Hunter Industries - who is building three other major projects we'll discuss in a bit - won the project with a bid of $6,154,722.50. That was nearly 6 percent under our own engineers' estimate of the construction costs for this project. (Total project cost is expected to be around $8 million.)
So ... what are we doing? We're expanding the road to include a continuous left-turn lane. We're also adding bike lanes and sidewalks. Now, this will stretch between Hwy 46 and FM 306, essentially. Work will begin this summer, and we'll certainly be working in the school zones through the school year.
Those are the facts right now; the goal right now is just to let folks know this project is coming. More details will be available when the project gets underway.
FM 306
This is another Hunter Industries project (including FM 1101, this is 2 of 4).
The contractor opened the bridge at Goodwin late last month. The bridge at Hunter Lane was opened earlier this week. Moving forward, this means traffic on this portion of FM 306 will never have to stop to wait for a train again. That's a thing completely of the past. Granted, it's only one lane each way. But that's because we've only got the westbound bridges built, and for now we're using them for two-way traffic. Work on the eastbound bridges started earlier this week.
Now, this shift to the overpasses has been accompanied by a few headaches, particularly at Common Street. We're working with the city of New Braunfels to adjust the traffic signals at Common to allow for optimal traffic flow.
That said, we did get a left turn lane open for westbound traffic at Hunter Road. That means folks headed to Gruene are able to get there by turning left at Hunter. The contractor is working on getting the section of road between I-35 and Lifehouse opened up to four lanes (two each way).
Overall completion is still on target for January 2015.
Loop 337 (Rueckle Road)
Seguin Avenue
Trains are using the new bridge and the shoo-fly detour has been removed. We are still having occasional overnight closures of Seguin Avenue at the UPRR crossing while painters touch up the bridge; previous paint work has been spoiled a bit by the rains during recent weeks.
The contractor, Austin Bridge and Road - the same company that built the original railroad underpass in the 1930s - is is busily working on the sidewalks and driveways on the west side of the underpass while stone masons place the rock face for the retaining walls. Remember: these stones for the wall face are the same stones that comprised the original retaining wall.
If all goes well, the latest ABR schedule shows work to be finished at the end of this month.
U.S. 281 Comal
Representatives with the U.S. Post Office held a public meeting this week to discuss potential new locations for the Spring Branch Post Office, which is sitting in the middle of what will eventually be the northbound main lanes of U.S. Highway 281.
The property the post office sits on belongs to the Texas Department of Transportation, as it was acquired through the normal right-of-way acquisition process. Since then, the USPS has been working with the folks at TxDOT to develop an agreeable solution to the problem; that is, our road is supposed to go where their building is currently sitting.
Among the solutions - all temporary, until the Post Office can be moved to another location - is a plan that would create a small "detour" for the northbound lanes through (or near) the west parking lot of the Post Office. This is a detour that will remain in place until the originally planned roadway can be built.
To be absolutely clear: this project is not delayed at this point. In fact, the project is running ahead of schedule. Credit Hunter Industries for that. Even with the situation around the Post Office, this project should finish well ahead of the scheduled completion date.
That said, local folks should note we'll finish with the detour in place, and we'll have to come back with a separate project to build the originally planned northbound lanes.
Questions about the relocation of the USPS building should be directed to Sandra A. Rybicki, Real Estate Specialist for the U.S. Postal Service. Her email address is sandra.a.rybicki@usps.gov.
Hwy 39 Ingram
About two weeks ago, our area engineer in Kerrville reported to the Ingram City Council regarding the progress Relmco Construction is making on Highway 39. Here are his notes from that report:
Material is being removed from the Loop Road. No more material will be stockpiled in this area.
We have stepped up dust control along the project. Water truck is on project and is shooting water to help with dust. (This is an issue we deal with on each of our projects, and it's often difficult to balance the need to keep dust down with the need to conserve water in the middle of a major drought....)
We are going to install some temporary paving on the Loop to improve aesthetics and help with dust and tracking of material.
Last month was the first month for a while the contractor did not fall further behind schedule. We are looking at hurrying along some of the paving work west of the Johnson Creek Bridge to get this area done before school and the arts and crafts fair.
I-10 frontage road - Seguin
This is a project that is entirely funded - that's 100 percent! - by non-TxDOT funds. A private developer fronted some money, as did the economic development group in Seguin, to build a frontage road between Hwy 46 and FM 464 on the west end of Seguin.
The project continues to move forward on schedule, and should wrap up by the end of summer.
When 2013 began three major projects sat in limbo after the
financial collapse of one of the department’s most oft-used road builders while
a flurry of major projects awaited a start date.
Those three stalled projects – including two segments of
Wurzbach Parkway and the I-10 Huebner project – resumed in the spring after
being released by a bankruptcy court and new contractors were selected by the
projects’ bonding company. Most of the early work done on each project was
maintenance – the projects needed to be cleaned up and inventory taken.
Just as the year came to a close, victory! The first segment
of Wurzbach Parkway, running from Blanco Road to West Avenue, opened for
traffic. Yes, an issue with the bridge deck surface is holding us back from
opening the Blanco Road overpass just yet … but we got that segment of the
parkway opened and operational. The bridge deck surface issue, by the way, is
about ride quality and not structure. We’re trying to provide the best-quality
product we can, and this is a major topic of conversation between TxDOT leaders
and the responsible bonding company.
Work continues on the eastern segment, also slowed by the
Ballenger Construction bankruptcy; we hope to have the stretch from
Jones-Maltsberger to Wetmore opened by the end of summer. With major road
builder Webber Construction working on the I-10 Huebner project, we’re assured
the project should be substantially completed by early 2015 (which is amazingly
not far off the original completion target).
With all that said, let’s take a look at a few of the
successes enjoyed by TxDOT during 2013.
Traffic signals
In January we turned on McMullen County’s first-ever full
traffic signal. The intersection of state Highways 16 and 72 was fitted to a
traffic signal that offers protected left-turn lanes and traffic control for
two major corridors for the booming Eagle Ford Shale energy traffic.
Later in the year we turned on a new signal at the
intersection of state Highway 46 and Rudeloff Road just north of Seguin. More
than 21,000 vehicles pass through that intersection each day, with many using
Rudeloff Road to reach the local airport. The signal replaces two-way stop
signs and has improved safety at that critical intersection – and has improved
the gateway to the Guadalupe-Comal community for those who commute via
aircraft.
Finally, as part of a major project up in north Comal
County, we built and turned on a signal at the intersection of U.S. Highway 281
and Rebecca Creek Road (in Spring Branch). That signal has already added a huge
amount of safety to the intersection and will prove critical when our work to
convert Highway 281 to a divided highway is finished by the end of 2015.
Finished projects
2013 was a year of continuing efforts. About a dozen
projects were completed through the year, each surrounding sidewalk
improvements or road resurfacing. The biggest project to wrap up was the “hot-in-place”
resurfacing project on I-37 on the south end of Bexar County.
In terms of our most major projects, last year was one of
those years where we simply continued that which we started. And, in fairness,
we started quite a bit of projects through the year.
Started projects
More than $221 million in contracts were awarded with work
starting during 2013. Now, that’s just the actual contract amount, not total
project costs (contract amounts do not include design and other costs
associated with a project before it even starts). These projects range from
adding capacity to the highway to reconstructing frontage roads to landscaping
improvements. Here are a few highlights:
Seguin Avenue (New
Braunfels): Austin Bridge Company is rebuilding a UPRR bridge and widening
the main entryway to downtown New Braunfels. The icing on the cake here is the
fact Austin Bridge is the same company that built the original UPRR bridge as
part of the Works Progress Administration program back in the 1930s. Work
started in January and will wrap up late spring 2014.
U.S. Highway 281
(Spring Branch): Hunter Industries started this 30-month project that turns
a country highway into a four-lane divided highway in February and is already
about halfway through the work, putting them on pace to potentially finish the work before the end of 2014. There are
several factors that may impact that, however, including the fate of the Spring
Branch Post Office.
FM 306 (Comal County):
Another project by Hunter Industries, this is two-year project that’s also just
more than halfway done. It started in March. While building two overpasses to separate
the road traffic from UPRR railroad traffic is a major portion of this work, we’re
also expanding the road to a four-lane divided highway.
I-35 SAMMC (northeast
San Antonio): Thanks in part to a $20 million boost from the Department of
Defense, Lane Construction was able to begin work expanding and adjusting I-35
between the two I-410 interchanges, near San Antonio Military Medical Center
(SAMMC). Work started in November.
Fred-Med (Medical
Center): One of the more anticipated projects in San Antonio is a “grade separation”
project at the intersection of Fredericksburg Road and Medical Drive. The
project had been initially slated to begin early 2012, but was pushed back by
utility adjustments and issues with a previous contractor. This summer the
contract was awarded to Texas Sterling Construction, who began work in
September. They are on pace to finish the project on time, by early 2015.
I-10 resurface and
restripe (near Crossroads): This three-month project flew largely under the
radar, but added a lane in each direction for folks driving between I-410 and
Wurzbach Road on the northwest side of town. Clark Construction is nearly
finished, and should be wrapped up within the next few weeks (weather
permitting!).
I-10 Seguin: This
conversion of the frontage road along I-10 between Highway 46 and FM 725 is
being done by Angel Brothers Construction and is entirely funded by local sources. Not only will this nine-month
project, which started in October, make the area safer, but it will add to the
growing economic corridor of the blossoming town.
Major milestones
The biggest milestone in the news this year was that of the
northbound I-35 exit to Forum Parkway, which was closed near the beginning of
the year to be reconstructed. We took what was a zipper-weave ramp with exiting
and entering traffic merging with one another, competing for road space, and
turned it in to a braided ramp with exiting traffic bridged over traffic
entering northbound I-35 from Loop 1604.
Nearly six weeks after closing the ramp, the contractor
discovered some design issues holding them back from building. Resolution
of those issues pushed deep into our summer months, and when the contractor
returned attention to the ramp they pushed hard to finish in time for the
Christmas shopping season (the new exit ramp is a major route to The Forum at
Olympia Parkway). That time frame was successfully met, and Santa helped us
open the ramp the day before Thanksgiving.
The first of three major milestones on the I-10 Huebner project kicked in when lanes on I-10 over Fredericksburg Road were closed for about two months while Webber Construction
rebuilt the bridge deck surface, forcing one of the lanes of main lane traffic
to use the frontage road. To the credit of the contractor, that work was finished
and the main lanes reopened three days earlier than the original 70-day target.
Out of the blue
A recap of the year wouldn’t be complete without recognizing
the quick work and assistance of contractors who responded – with astonishing
haste, no less – to emergency situations this year. Most notably, this includes
an unused bridge over U.S. Highway 281 that was hit by a truck this summer.
The crash caused a closure of some main lanes on U.S. 281
that lasted several days, and the total closure of the highway for a weekend.
Hunter Industries was able to complete the work to repair the bridge and clean
up the mess in less than 30 hours, though they had more than 72 to finish the
work.
On I-35 between Schertz and New Braunfels a garbage truck
hit the underside of an overpass, causing structural concerns for a lane of the
northbound I-35 main lanes. Hunter again came to help, offering equipment to
assist in the short-term. Dan Williams Construction finished the work fast,
though – getting the crossing under I-35 reopened in a matter of weeks rather
than months.
Looking forward
Over the course of 2014, we’re looking forward to completing
the bookends of the Wurzbach Parkway project as well as finish the I-35 project
through Selma and Schertz. If we get favorable conditions, we could wrap up
work on FM 306 near Gruene and on U.S. Highway 281 in Spring Branch. We’ll
finish the Seguin Avenue project being done by Austin Bridge and Road.
The Main Street bridge in Boerne should be finished soon,
and Relmco is expected to get the expansion of Highway 39 in Ingram near
completion by year’s end. We’ll wrap up work on an overpass for Loop 1604 at
Marbach by mid-year as well.
Meanwhile, we’re starting a project to convert Loop 1604 to
an expressway (overpasses!) between Bandera Road and Culebra Road in northwest
San Antonio. That should kick off this spring, as will some smaller projects in
New Braunfels.
Those in the Fair Oaks Ranch and Boerne Stage Road area will
see significant upgrades to the frontage roads along I-10, with work on the
Ralph Fair Road overpass starting this spring.
Though
work officially began October 13, Texas Department of Transportation officials joined
civic and elected officials of Seguin Monday to mark the start of a unique
frontage road project along westbound I-10 in Seguin that will enhance safety,
mobility and economic development.
The
new frontage road will connect state Highway 46 and Farm to Market 464 on the
city’s northwest side. The road will be mostly one-way – westbound – but
feature a two-way frontage road between Friesenhahn Road and Hwy 46. The total
estimated project cost is $4.7 million and should wrap up late summer 2014.
Funding
for the project is where the story of this frontage road becomes unique: the
project is entirely funded by local coffers, with money coming from three
separate sources. The city of Seguin and the Seguin Economic Development
Corporation Will pay as much as $1.25 million each, for a total of $2.5 million
effectively coming from the city. NewQuest Properties, a commercial development
company with plans to bring a major shopping center to the area, will pay the
remaining tab. The estimated portion of NewQuest’s share currently sits at
about $2.2 million, but that number could go up if the project requires.
“This
partnership with others exemplifies exactly what we strive to do,” TxDOT
spokesman Josh Donat said. “Those who pay attention to the news and to our
community are aware of the transportation funding struggles we face in this
state. But when local agencies and private developers come to us with an
opportunity like this, we celebrate – this is how our partnerships get projects
done.”
Continued
development of frontage roads – between state Highway 123 and FM 464 – is on
the current TxDOT five-year plan. This project is the first step in that
process. Angel Brothers Enterprises, of New Braunfels, is constructing the
two-lane frontage road, which will also feature protected turn lanes for those
entering the proposed commercial development. Necessary utility lines will be
extended along the frontage road to serve the new development as well.
