Commuters who used I-35 in Lewisville might want to avoid it part of the weekend.
The entire highway will be shut down in both directions for several hours as crews demolish the Fox Avenue Bridge. It’s part of the 35-Express project, which aims to add lanes and widen bridges in the area.
“Please be patient, bear with us,” said project spokeswoman Kimberly Sims.
Sims said the reason for the project, set to complete in 2017, is right now the highway cannot handle the sheer volume of cars that travel it every day.
“We see hundreds of thousands of people that drive along this roadway every day. I believe there’s about 12,000 trucks that we get every day on this road,” Sims said.
Drivers admit the commute is terrible.
“Traffic, roadways, potholes, I hit them every day. It’s ridiculous,” said Denton resident Josh Williams. “It is hell.”
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“It’s very busy. Traffic is very bad,” agreed driver Alicia Roberson.
As the project continues drivers can sign up for traffic text alerts here.
Below are the specific lane closures for this weekend:
FRONTAGE ROAD CLOSURES:
- 7 p.m. Friday, March 20 through 8 a.m. the morning of Saturday, March 21: The southbound I-35E frontage road will be reduced to one lane and shifted west.
- 8 p.m. Saturday, March 21 through 8 a.m. the morning of Sunday, March 22: The northbound I-35E frontage road will be reduced to one lane and shifted east.
MAINLANE CLOSURES:
- 8 p.m. Friday, March 20 through 8 a.m. the morning of Saturday, March 21: The left lane of southbound I-35E and the Fox Avenue bridge will be closed to traffic.
- 10 p.m. Friday, March 20 through 8 a.m. the morning of Saturday March 21: All lanes of southbound I-35E and the two left lanes of northbound I-35E approaching Fox Avenue will be closed to traffic.
Detour: Traffic will be diverted along the frontage road and will enter southbound I-35E at the ramp south of Fox Avenue.
- 11 p.m. Friday, March 20 through 3 a.m. the morning of Saturday, March 21: All lanes of northbound I-35E approaching Fox Avenue will be closed to traffic.
- 8 p.m. Saturday, March 21 through 8 a.m. the morning of Sunday, March 22: The left lane of northbound I-35E and the Fox Avenue bridge will be closed to traffic
- 10 p.m. Saturday, March 21 until 8 a.m. the morning of Sunday, March 22: All lanes of northbound I-35E and the two left lanes of southbound I-35E approaching Fox Avenue will close to traffic.
Detour: Drivers will be diverted off of the interstate at Fox Avenue, continue down the frontage road and enter northbound I-35E north of Fox Avenue.
ENTRANCE & EXIT RAMPS:
- 7 p.m. Friday, March 20 until 8 a.m. the morning of Saturday, March 21: The southbound I-35E entrance ramp just south of Main Street will be closed. Traffic will continue down the frontage road to access southbound I-35E.
- 7 p.m. Saturday, March 21 until 8 a.m. the morning of Sunday, March 22: The northbound I-35E entrance ramp north of SH 121 Business will be closed to traffic. Traffic will continue down the frontage and enter northbound I-35E north of Fox Avenue.
This work is related to the 35Express project, an expansion of I-35E between US Highway 380 in Denton County and I-635 in Dallas County. All closures are subject to weather conditions and may be postponed, if necessary.
