DFW Projects Thread

[txstateends]

http://drivemidtown.com/view/photos/

Updated photos of the 183 reconstruction. Again,suprised they did not use concrete.

When a really hot summer comes along (like 1980 >ugh!!<), they'll wish they'd used concrete, but oh well.

[txstateends]

Dallas' "Southern Gateway" project update:

The bridge for 8th Street (historic US 80, more recently TX 180) over I-35E will be removed over the weekend.  All I-35E traffic will be detoured to the service roads.

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/transportation/2018/06/07/35e-shutdown-oak-cliff-bridge-demolition-will-funnel-traffic-onto-frontage-roads-weekend

[In_Correct]

Does Texas even build Cement roads any more? 

[J N Winkler]

TxDOT uses Portland cement concrete extensively for Interstates, notably the widened parts of I-35 between Dallas and Austin.  Unlike the case in Kansas and Nebraska, however, I cannot think of any two-lane concrete roads in Texas.

[longhorn]

TxDOT uses Portland cement concrete extensively for Interstates, notably the widened parts of I-35 between Dallas and Austin.  Unlike the case in Kansas and Nebraska, however, I cannot think of any two-lane concrete roads in Texas.

Is Portland Cement a brand or  type of cement?

And yes, the expanded I-35 from Hillsboro to Temple and Belton to Salado is concrete. I-35 E  is concrete too and is about to get an extra lane added.

[TXtoNJ]

TxDOT uses Portland cement concrete extensively for Interstates, notably the widened parts of I-35 between Dallas and Austin.  Unlike the case in Kansas and Nebraska, however, I cannot think of any two-lane concrete roads in Texas.

Is Portland Cement a brand or  type of cement?

And yes, the expanded I-35 from Hillsboro to Temple and Belton to Salado is concrete. I-35 E  is concrete too and is about to get an extra lane added.

Type, in opposition to asphalt concrete.

[AsphaltPlanet]

Is Portland Cement a brand or  type of cement?

This is delving into semantics, but "cement" or more specifically, "Portland cement" is an ingredient in concrete.  Cement is not a synonym for concrete, but rather is an ingredient.  Portland cement is the most common type of cement used in concrete and other concrete like products.

Type, in opposition to asphalt concrete.

Asphalt concrete contains "asphalt cement" which is obviously a different type of cement than that that is used in concrete.

[txstateends]

US 75 in Plano from south of 15th Street to just south of the Bush Turnpike will be closed from Friday evening to Monday morning.  Workers will be removing the EB part of the Plano Parkway bridge, as part of work to redo the northside on- and off- ramps connecting the Bush Turnpike to US 75.

https://www.nbcdfw.com/traffic/stories/US-75-to-be-Closed-in-Plano-All-Weekend-485343261.html

[MCRoads]

Anybody already mention the two new reversible (tolled, of corse) DFW is getting?

[Plutonic Panda]

Anybody already mention the two new reversible (tolled, of corse) DFE is getting?

hopefully there will be plans make that four tolled lanes eventually?

[txstateends]

Another new project:  TxDOT is planning improvements from SE Fort Worth to Mansfield, which will include:
* I-820 south of Meadowbrook
* I-20, Forest Hill to Kelly-Elliott
* US 287 SE to Sublett Road

A public meeting will be held at a high school in Fort Worth on July 19.  Construction would start in or after 2022.

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/community/fort-worth/article213845244.html

[J N Winkler]

Is Portland Cement a brand or  type of cement?

This is delving into semantics, but "cement" or more specifically, "Portland cement" is an ingredient in concrete.  Cement is not a synonym for concrete, but rather is an ingredient.  Portland cement is the most common type of cement used in concrete and other concrete like products.

Portland cement gets its name from the island of Portland just off the southern English coast, from which much of the pale gray building stone that was used to build official London was quarried.  Portland cement concrete usually has the same color as Portland stone, though its color can be altered by adding pigments to the cement.

[wxfree]

Is Portland Cement a brand or  type of cement?

This is delving into semantics, but "cement" or more specifically, "Portland cement" is an ingredient in concrete.  Cement is not a synonym for concrete, but rather is an ingredient.  Portland cement is the most common type of cement used in concrete and other concrete like products.

Portland cement gets its name from the island of Portland just off the southern English coast, from which much of the pale gray building stone that was used to build official London was quarried.  Portland cement concrete usually has the same color as Portland stone, though its color can be altered by adding pigments to the cement.

Sometimes in my mind I see concrete as a different color than it really is.  It's just a pigment of my imagination.

[rte66man]

 

Sometimes in my mind I see concrete as a different color than it really is.  It's just a pigment of my imagination.

[AsphaltPlanet]

Video of some of the recently completed TEXpress lanes through Tarrant County:

[wxfree]

Here are some photos of the new I-35W with managed lanes.  These photos are taken today from the 28th St. (SH 183) overpass.

This shows the overpass and freeway.  It's in an elongated bowl shape, with the managed lanes lower than the general purpose lanes.  The clearance shown over the far right lane is 20.0 feet.  It's higher above the left lane and managed lanes.  I was on the left side of the frontage road north of 28th St.


This is looking straight across toward the northbound frontage road.


This is looking north.  There's an entrance to and exit from the managed lanes north of 28th St.  I didn't notice the high mast lighting between the GP lanes and managed lanes while driving, but I noticed in the photos.


This is the view south, toward downtown.  There's still some work on the northbound managed lanes. 

[Anthony_JK]

Ugh. Why only 2 GP lanes in each direction? Hopefully they find the cash to upgrade to a 3-2-2-3 setup. Other than that, a nice roadway.

[wxfree]

Ugh. Why only 2 GP lanes in each direction? Hopefully they find the cash to upgrade to a 3-2-2-3 setup. Other than that, a nice roadway.

The obvious answer is that it was built this way to reduce the cost and to limit the capacity increase to help drive congestion and managed lane use.

The final configuration calls for 4 lanes in each direction all the way to US 81, with 2 managed lanes south of I-820 and 2 or 3 north of there.  The specifications note the potential for deferment of additional lanes.  Having a quick look at the CDA, I can find where a third lane is provided for along I-820, but I didn't find any reference to additional lanes here.  I don't know when they're planned or under what conditions.

[J N Winkler]

I am really unhappy with the way construction was handled on this project.  TxDOT resorted to a CDA (North Tarrant Express) partly because that was the then preferred method for high-profile projects, and partly because an early contract commitment was necessary in order to use ARRA stimulus funds and the design could not have been developed to 100% PSE (necessary for design-bid-build) in time to meet the deadline.

The chosen developer was a Ferrovial joint venture, which initially planned to carry out the actual design and construction work through a series of consecutively numbered RFPs that would be let essentially as small design or construction contracts.  Because I wanted access to the released-for-construction plans, I familiarized myself with the project website and signed up for notification emails for contract advertisements.

After the first few notification emails, I realized that the Ferrovial JV would not be uploading RFC plans to the Web where anyone could download them, but rather expected prospective contractors to respond to each RFP email to obtain access to a file transfer site where the documents for that RFP were hosted.  The username and password was different for each RFP and I believe several different hosting platforms were used over the life of the project.  Some RFPs had special requirements and in one case responding to the RFP email resulted in paper documents being overnighted to me via FedEx--a totally unnecessary expense since I had zero interest in bidding and just wanted RFC plans in electronic format.  I wondered if I was getting all of the emails that were being sent out, because the ones I was getting seemed to be skipping RFP numbers and functional discipline groups like drainage, utility relocation, stormwater pollution prevention, etc.

Around the time the JV was starting to advertise RFPs for traffic work such as lighting, signing, marking, and sign structures, I got an email inviting me to an industry meeting for DBEs.  Naturally, I did not go, since my interest was limited to traffic plans and I wanted to "let my fingers do the walking" for those.  Around that time the RFP notification emails dried up and RFP notices ceased to be placed on the project website.  The ostensible purpose of the DBE meeting was to advise contractors of upcoming bid opportunities, but I think the real reason was to discontinue email and public Web notification of RFPs and wash out anyone who did not seek face time with the developer representatives.

I did eventually score a set of RFC plans for signing and marking, but I believe it comprises only part of the project since the plan sheets reference adjacent segments whose signing and marking is not included.

Contrast this with the I-405 Bellevue to Lynnwood design-build in Washington state, which had a dedicated folder on WSDOT's public-access FTP server and allowed interested members of the public to follow the evolution of each functional group over multiple drafts of the plans.  If a similar approach had been used for the NTE, we would have had access to the complete design and would have been able to develop a fuller understanding of the design intent.

[Stephane Dumas]

I saw via TXDOT project tracker then I-30 (Tom Landry Fwy), they'll add frontage roads from TX-161 to Beltline Road in Grand Prairie.  I saw some construction on Google Streetview where the shots was from January 2018.  https://www.google.com/maps/@32.7593317,-97.009156,3a,75y,211.92h,97.67t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s77cAb_MZv0GWE4cE1psxwg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

[longhorn]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyJBOv-vLmc

July update, almost done.

[chays]

Does anyone have any updates on the US-175 (CF Hawn Freeway) extension to I-45 in Dallas?  I can't find any project schedule dates, but I believe it is due to be completed this year.

[inkyatari]

Does anyone have any updates on the US-175 (CF Hawn Freeway) extension to I-45 in Dallas?  I can't find any project schedule dates, but I believe it is due to be completed this year.

All I could find is this..

https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/Progress-on-Hwy-175-SM-Wright-Freeway-to-Boulevard-plan-482425331.html

[Road Hog]

While we're in Pavement 101 .... What's the difference between "asphalt" and "asphaltic concrete"?

[txstateends]

Does anyone have any updates on the US-175 (CF Hawn Freeway) extension to I-45 in Dallas?  I can't find any project schedule dates, but I believe it is due to be completed this year.

Would be a stretch if it were this year.  I'm sure many are very much looking forward to it finally getting done.  It's too bad the new terminus won't have all 4 movements (maybe when there's more $$?).  Quite a local debate over whether the change of S.M. Wright should be 4 lanes or 6, some were thinking 4 lanes would leave room for commercial development, but I think TxDOT/Dallas/whoever decided it should be 6 lanes for the parkway/boulevard.  I guess the decision in the TV report about the city accepting maintenance for S.M. Wright north of U.S. 175 means that the TX 310 designation will stay where it is now, to the south.