Traffic Control on IH 35

TxDOT Short Course October 16, 2012

Andy Petter, P.E. Interim District Engineer (Waco) Texas Department of Transportation

Gary Thomas, P.E. I-35 Mobility Coordinator Texas A&M Transportation Institute

I-35 Expansion Project

TxDOT is committed to finishing the widening of Main Street Texas

(I-35) to six lanes from San Antonio to

Hillsboro. San Antonio

Hillsboro

Highlights

• 45% of Texas population lives within 50 miles of I-35

• Over 30 million travelers per year use this corridor

• Approximately two-thirds travel through the corridor

• Over 1,000 businesses on these 96 miles

Highlights

• 14 segments/17 projects

• 55,000–111,000 vehicles/day

• 25–30% trucks

Total Cost Approx. $2.1B

Construction

Right-of-Way

Utilities$1.6B

$410M

$110M

Highlights

Completed

Nearly completed

Active

Starting soon

6B

6A

5C

5B

4

3C

3A2

3A1

2B

1C 1B

1A

3B

5A

Hill County Safety

Rest Areas

Bell County

Safety Rest Areas

BRB

• Complete: 1A, 3C, 6A, 6B

• Nearly complete: 5C

• Active today: 1B, 1C, 3A1, 3B, BRB, 5A, 5B Hill Co. safety rest areas

• Complete in early 2017

Loop 121 Interchange Belton

General Improvements

• 3 lanes in each direction on I-35

• Added I-35 crossings

• Added and relocated ramps

• 1-way continuous frontage roads

• U-turns at selected crossings

• Safety rest areas

• Technology/ITS

• Truck lane restrictions

• Aesthetics

• Green initiatives

Aesthetics

• Brazos River Bridges

Aesthetics

• Wall Murals

West

Abbott

Salado

Green Initiatives

• Air Quality – Night-time lane closures delays and emissions

– Warm-mix asphalt technologies to fuel and air quality

• Storm Water Pollution Prevention – Environmental mgmt. system (e.g., const. stage gate

inspections)

– Wetland preservation

• Habitat Protection – Salado Springs salamander

– Cliff and barn swallows’ nests under bridges

– Man-made bat houses (Salado Creek, Lampasas River)

Green Initiatives

• Recycling – Roadway base material, concrete

– Reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP)

– Recycled asphalt shingles (RAS)

– Rubber for crash and guardrail systems

– Metal for signs, bridge girders, sign posts

• Sustainable Practices – Compost to reestablish vegetation fertilizer

– Solar panels to power irrigation systems + warning beacons

– Xeriscaping focused on native plants irrigation

FM 2837 Interchange Lorena

13

Impact

59

64 64

56

15

6

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Today 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

I-35 Miles Under Construction

Peak Construction: 2012 – 2014 64 miles

Reducing Impacts - Construction

• Lane closures limited to evenings – Sun 10:00pm - Mon 7:00am

– Mon - Fri, 7:00pm - 7:00am

• Lane rental fees

• Lane closure blackout dates

• Advance notifications

• 6-day work week

• Incentives for completing ahead of schedule

Reducing Impacts - Communication

• 80+ outreach efforts

• Business community meetings

• www.my35.org

• I-35 newsletter

• Lane closure notifications

• No surprises!

Work Zone Research

Traveler Information

Bluetooth sensors

Queue

Warning

System

Lane Closure

Notification System

End of Queue Warning Systems

• Automated monitoring near a work zone

• Warning of slow speeds

• Warning location of stop and go traffic

Lane Closure Notification System

• My35.org • E-mail • Twitter • Facebook • Lane Closure

Assessment

• DMS • HAR • End of Queue

Warning System • Travel Delay

Rules

Automatic

Manual

Estimating Construction Traffic Delay

• Use of TTI research to estimate delay, queue length and duration

Forecast of Future Conditions

• En-route via signage

• Pre-trip via My35.org, social media, email alerts

Current Travel

Time = 70

minutes

Lane

Closure

Anticipated Delay

t+70 = 25 minutes

2 5

Business 77 Interchange Lacy-Lakeview

Thank you