I-20 widening through Abilene

[Chris]

A public meeting was held yesterday for a 5 mile, six lane expansion project of I-20 in Abilene. They also released draft schematics for the project.

https://www.txdot.gov/projects/hearings-meetings/abilene/2024/i20-west-widening-project-020824.html

A massive 5 level interchange is planned at US 83 / US 277

[kphoger]

What the what?  While I've never driven through that interchange on I-20, I driven through it a bunch of times on US-277, and from that perspective it seems like a five-level stack is absolute overkill.

[J N Winkler]

What the what?  While I've never driven through that interchange on I-20, I driven through it a bunch of times on US-277, and from that perspective it seems like a five-level stack is absolute overkill.

I think that is a function of plans being still in the preliminary stages.  Kansas has had at least three Maltese cross stacks under consideration at comparable points in the process--K-7/K-10, I-35/I-435, and I-235/US 54-400--and, after many hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of construction over the course of a decade, is zero for three for the foreseeable future.

[formulanone]

What the what?  While I've never driven through that interchange on I-20, I driven through it a bunch of times on US-277, and from that perspective it seems like a five-level stack is absolute overkill.

I was in Abilene last September and never saw that much traffic to warrant a 5-level stack. I can see widening I-20 for a stretch approaching and through town, but that's about it.

[Stephane Dumas]

It might be an overkill now but who knows if it would be part of a "High plains corridor" between Abilene and San Angelo?

Still, did TX DOT have once some bigger plans where Dub Wright Blvd meet US-277 with a diamond interchange?
https://maps.app.goo.gl/nVajsPo1uSyGz3UB6

[Bobby5280]

Maybe if they extended I-44 from Wichita Falls down to Abilene such a thing might be worthwhile. An I-44 extension to San Angelo to meet a possible I-27 extension would route even more truck traffic thru Abilene. A finished Ports to Plains Corridor would give truck-based shipments from Mexico a good bypass around the very busy I-35 corridor. The traffic could move thru San Angelo, Abilene and Wichita Falls on the way to Northeast US destinations.

US-277 from Abilene to Wichita Falls isn't all that far off from Interstate standards currently. The 4-lane expansion project built around 20 years ago laid a lot of ground work for a potential Interstate upgrade.

[Plutonic Panda]

What the what?  While I've never driven through that interchange on I-20, I driven through it a bunch of times on US-277, and from that perspective it seems like a five-level stack is absolute overkill.

Texas knows how to build a proper interchange. Just a directional stack as oppose to cloverleafs that make you slow down more. I'd say every freeway to freeway interchange would ideally be a stack.

[Bobby5280]

If one of the goals is having continuous frontage roads for both freeways go thru the interchange then a directional stack is the only alternative. Building cloverleaf loops as elevated bridges over frontage roads would be a big waste of money.

The 5-level stack interchange would also have a smaller real estate footprint than the existing cloverleaf interchange. That might open some additional parcels of land for commercial development.

[jtespi]

Yay, no more cloverleafs or tight loop ramps! I support the building of a stack interchange to future-proof it.

What the what?  While I've never driven through that interchange on I-20, I driven through it a bunch of times on US-277, and from that perspective it seems like a five-level stack is absolute overkill.

Texas knows how to build a proper interchange. Just a directional stack as oppose to cloverleafs that make you slow down more. I'd say every freeway to freeway interchange would ideally be a stack.

^ I agree. Ever freeway to freeway interchange should be a stack or some variation of it. Loop ramps should not be used anymore, especially in a freeway to freeway interchange.