Construction work happens at Gaston-Garland-Grand on Feb. 14, 2023. Photography by Renee Umsted.
Editor’s note: If you own a business located near the Gaston-Garland-Grand intersection, I want to hear from you about how this project has affected, or not affected, your business. Please contact me, Renee, at rumsted@advocatemag.com.Â
The hits just keep on coming.
Drivers at Gaston-Garland-Grand saw changes after Saturday afternoon, when traffic on Gaston Avenue was pushed to the outside lanes while construction crews work on paving the inside. Traffic on Gaston is expected to move into its final configuration by late spring, according to the latest fact sheet from the Texas Department of Transportation, and lane closures will be scheduled as needed.
Crews are also completing the widening of the State Highway 78/Garland Road bridge, just east of Gaston.
That work — widening the bridge and paving the center of Gaston Avenue — is what TxDOT is calling Phase 2 and Phase 3. Phase 1, according to TxDOT, has been completed.
Phase 4 includes moving all traffic on SH 78 onto the southbound SH 78 bridge so that paving and drainage work can be completed on the northbound bridge. (Crews will have already prepared the area for the traffic switch, in Phases 2 and 3.) Also, traffic signals and lighting will begin to be installed. This phase is expected to finish summer 2023, weather permitting. (As previously reported, weather includes temperature and ground saturation in addition to snowmageddons and thunderstorms.)
Then comes Phase 5. Traffic will move into its final configuration on SH 78. TxDOT says drivers should be alert to lane closures, as work will be ongoing on curbs, sidewalks and medians. Also, they’ll be working on lighting and sod.
Here’s the latest graphic from TxDOT, showing the plans for the intersection.
Photo courtesy of TxDOT.
Construction on this $6.3 million intersection reconfiguration, meant to provide safer turning movements and additional places for pedestrians to cross the roads, began in December 2021.
A completion date of spring 2023 was initially announced, but that deadline has since been pushed back to fall 2023. However, TxDOT says fall 2023 is within the original time limits of the contract.
Over the course of the construction, there have been various lane shifts and closures. The Santa Fe Trail pedestrian bridge that crosses over SH 78/Garland Road was closed for a while but reopened September 2022.
When the project is completed, we will not have a roundabout at the intersection, as some Advocate readers have suggested on Facebook. TxDOT’s plan is in the photo above, and you can see a high-res version, as well as more information about the project, here.
