Lanes are open as usual, following the traffic shift, as seen in this picture taken Feb. 14. Photo by Renee Umsted.
An Advocate story published Saturday morning about a planned traffic switch at the Gaston-Garland-Grand intersection generated many questions from readers. This is an effort to answer some of them.
The story reported that traffic on Gaston Avenue was shifting to the outside lanes, allowing crews to work on the inside.
This switch was scheduled to begin Friday evening and last until Saturday afternoon.
On Saturday morning, certain lanes were blocked. For example, vehicles on Gaston heading toward the intersection were only able to make a right turn.
But since then, lanes of traffic have been reopened as usual. A public information officer for the Texas Department of Transportation, which is overseeing the project, said lane closures were required during the reconfiguration, but the traffic shift was completed as planned.
TxDOT has not announced when this construction on the inside lanes is expected to be finished.
However, the department said the entire project is scheduled to be completed by the fall. Though this is later than the initial expected completion date of spring 2023, the TxDOT public information officer said the new completion date is still within the original time limits of the contract.
The weather was cited as a reason for the delay in project completion. Temperatures and ground saturation are a part of it, along with storm events, the public information officer said.
And during some excavations, site conditions required more time for evaluation, another reason for the delay.
“Work might not take place under inclement conditions for the safety of the crews, equipment and the work zone itself,” the public information officer said.
Construction at the intersection began December 2021. The $6.3 million project is meant to provide safer turning movements and through-lanes on Garland/Grand and create new places for pedestrians and cyclists to cross the intersection.
