Texas
Sterling Construction will close Fredericksburg Road at Medical Drive midnight Thursday night for up to two weeks while bridge crews reconstruct the
intersection.
The planned closure date was pushed back 24 hours due
to rain Tuesday night and through Wednesday. Project bosses may need to push
the closure another 24 hours if the wet weather continues through Thursday.
During the closure, traffic will only be able to turn
right onto Medical Drive. Traffic on Medical Drive will continue to be able to
travel through the intersection and continue into or out of the South Texas
Medical Center. No left turns in any direction will be possible. A brief YouTube video shows
one potential detour route.
Due to the closure, VIA will temporarily amend the
Via Primo Route 100. The stations at the corner of Ewing Halsell and Medical
Drive will have limited services. Stops at Fredericksburg Road and Marriott
Drive, Fredericksburg Road and Datapoint, Fredericksburg Road and Data Pointe
and at Fredericksburg Road and Wurzbach will also be impacted. Bus riders are
encouraged to check with VIA to see how their commutes will be affected.
With the road closed, crews with Texas Sterling
Construction will replace the road surface with a bridge deck, allowing for
road builders to construct the proposed through lanes of Medical Drive at the
intersection. The project’s goal is to provide an unfettered route from I-10 to
emergency facilities at the South Texas Medical Center while addressing
congestion in the area.
Texas Sterling has two weeks to have the bridge in
place or they would face financial penalties. They may earn bonuses for having
it open early as well. In order to accomplish the work in such a short window,
they have proposed a new-to-Texas technique approved by the Federal Highway
Administration called a lateral-slide bridge placement. The technique could
mean Texas Sterling is able to have Fredericksburg Road re-opened in as little
as half the allotted time of the closure.