Navigating North Texas as highway construction projects multiply

The chatter on Facebook from frustrated Tarrant County commuters reflects conversations going on in-person throughout North Texas.

"Is EVERY road in Fort Worth under construction?" Steve Peglar asked Thursday.

"Pretty much the whole of Grapevine seems to be too," posted Louise Kewish. "Some master plan somewhere I'm sure!"

"Orange cones, BEGONE. The queen has spoken," posted Carolyn Wills Ivory.

Sometimes it does seem as if every major roadway in the region is under construction.

It's a problem that many other communities across the nation would love to have.

As the population in these parts continues to grow, so does the demand for space on local highways and roads. The good news is that North Texas has garnered a substantial portion of state and federal transportation funds that, when combined with local resources and money from tollway investors, are making expansion projects possible.

The largest projects under way include the North Tarrant Express, which involves construction along a 13.5-mile stretch of Northeast Loop 820 and Airport Freeway from Interstate 35W to the Texas 121/183 split; the $1.02 billion DFW Connector, which is the reconstruction of Texas 114/121 in Grapevine; and the Chisholm Trail Parkway, a massive and long-awaited $1.6 billion project that runs 28 miles from Interstate 30 near downtown Fort Worth to U.S. 67 in Cleburne. Other projects include Texas 161, which is the western extension of the President George Bush Turnpike through western Dallas County down to Interstate 20 in Grand Prairie; the widening of Texas 26 through Grapevine and Colleyville; and the construction of Golden Triangle Boulevard from I-35W to U.S. 377 in far north Fort Worth and Keller.

And that's just the major work. Smaller but no less vexing projects are honking up commutes. In Colleyville, construction on the roundabout at John McCain and Pleasant Run roads is scheduled to begin this month and continue into early 2013. Improvements on Fort Worth's West Berry Street and South University Drive will have the intersection closed for seven weeks.

And there's more to come. Just this week the Texas Transportation Department announced an $11.7 million expansion of Farm Road 1187 from Interstate 20 south to Oak Street in Aledo. Of course, there's no such thing as a minor project if it's along the road you want to take.

The bad news for area drivers is that none of these projects are completed overnight. And as construction evolves, changes occur that upset one's ability to predict how long a drive will take on any given day.

Ramps close and open; lanes are shifted overnight.

Officials with the Transportation Department understand the pain that construction projects inflict on drivers. In an effort to relieve some of the frustration, the state agency offers nifty searchable databases that allow users to check on closed or damaged roads or those under construction. Another site allows commuters to monitor accidents in real time.

Many GPS systems also provide information on traffic tie-ups and construction challenges. They're handy tools, but there's also the good old-fashioned way to navigate one's way around a problem area: a street map. Now is a very good time for folks to familiarize themselves with side streets and back roads that let them avoid congestion and find an alterative way to get to their favorite shop or restaurant that's in the construction zone.

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