Progress can be a pain in the pocketbook, as a handful of businesses that rely heavily on the Meacham Boulevard exit may soon find out.
The Interstate 35W northbound exit to Meacham will shut down at about 9 p.m. Saturday and remain closed through June 2017 — that’s 14 months — as part of the ongoing construction project on the busy freeway.
Motorists will be directed to the next exit, at Beach Street, and be asked to follow the detour signs to Sylvania Avenue and loop back around to Meacham, a detour of more than a mile.
There are numerous businesses off the Meacham exit, including five hotels and a handful of restaurants.
Other exit closings and traffic switches are planned for the weekend, which are more common than not along I-35W.
What’s closed
From 9 p.m. Friday through 10 a.m. Saturday
▪ Rolling freeway closures on northbound and southbound I-35W, from 33rd Street to 28th Street.
▪ The I-35W on-ramp from Pharr Street. Traffic will be directed to Sylvania Avenue.
▪ The connector from westbound Loop 820 to southbound I-35W. Traffic will be directed to Farm Road 156.
▪ The exit from northbound I-35W to Beach Street. Traffic will be directed to the Meacham exit. (Yes, it will still be open Saturday morning.)
▪ The connector from eastbound Interstate 30 to northbound I-35W. Traffic will be directed to the Rosedale Street exit.
▪ The connector from southbound I-35W to westbound 820. Traffic will be directed to the Haltom Road exit.
From 9 p.m. Saturday through 10 a.m. Sunday
▪ The connector from eastbound I-30 to northbound I-35W. Traffic will be directed to the Rosedale exit.
▪ All lanes of westbound I-820 at the I-35W/I-820 interchange. Traffic will be directed to the Basswood Boulevard exit.
From 9 p.m. Sunday through 5 a.m. Monday
▪ All lanes of northbound I-35W at the I-35W/I-820 interchange. Traffic will be directed to eastbound 820 to the U.S. 377 exit, then back to westbound 820 to I-35W.
▪ The connector from northbound I-35W to westbound I-820. Traffic will be directed to eastbound 820 to the U.S. 377 exit, then back to westbound 820.
The project
The North Tarrant Express I-35W project is a $1.4 billion effort to modernize the corridor from Interstate 30 near downtown Fort Worth to Loop 820 in north Fort Worth. That work is being done by North Tarrant Infrastructure. Another $244 million segment, from Loop 820 to North Tarrant Parkway, is being done by the Texas Department of Transportation.
The work includes the reconstruction of existing main lanes, the addition of two toll lanes in each direction, and modernization of ramps and frontage roads.
The project is scheduled to be completed in 2018.
For more information on the road closings, go to www.northtarrantexpress.com.
Lee Williams: 817-390-7840, @leewatson
Comments