Since the north-bound exit to Forum Parkway on I-35 closed a couple weeks ago, I've fielded a variety of calls and emails regarding the posted detour route.
Most of the questions question the efficiency of our route through Olympia Parkway. Rather than continue to offer the same response over and over and over, I'll let everyone know the reasons behind our current detour routes.
The biggest concern expressed is the frustration over needing to take the Olympia Parkway exit, then drive all the way to Olympia Parkway and wait at the traffic signal before continuing into The Forum shopping center. Instead, I've heard several suggest taking Agora Parkway immediately after exiting at Olympia Parkway.
DO NOT DO THIS.
Remember our top priority at TxDOT is safety. Moving from the main lanes of I-35 (where traffic is moving at 70 miles per hour) onto a frontage road (45 miles per hour), then moving over two full lanes of roadway while slowing down to a safe turning speed in less than a tenth of a mile is simply dangerous. Maneuvers like this are likely to contribute to collisions, and we're trying to avoid that. Instead, shoot for Olympia Parkway. That offers you enough room to comfortably slow and turn off the frontage road.
Besides, our detour isn't intended to get you (specifically) to The Forum anyway. Our intent is getting folks to Forum Parkway - letting traffic out directly where the closure ends.
But if you are using north-bound I-35 to reach The Forum, our recommendation is to actually use the Pat Booker Road exit. Pat Booker Road intersects with Loop 1604, where you can take the west-bound access road into The Forum. Having driven them both, this detour seems to be the more efficient option for shoppers heading to The Forum.
Enough on that. Let's talk construction....
As I just said, we've now had the north-bound exit ramp to Forum Parkway shut down for more than two weeks. We've gotten our barriers set up and have started some excavation since that happened, and over the next few weeks we'll be focusing on constructing some storm drain structures and continuing to excavate the work area.
On the other end - at FM 3009 - we're installing storm sewer drain pipes and preparing to work on the bridge support columns and caps. Hopefully we'll get after the columns and caps sometime in the next week or two.
As for the work between FM 1518 and Schertz Parkway ... we're progressing. We're still targeting the spring to have those entrance and exit ramps re-opened.
That's it - that's what's going on. If you have any questions regarding the project, comment below!
