There is some good news and bad news for drivers on Interstate 35W in Fort Worth. One section of the highway widening project may be finished earlier than expected, but another is just starting to cause construction and congestion issues.
Driving inside the loop is starting to get complicated.
"It's just, it's crazy," said driver Jimmy Spivey. "I take a lot of side streets, lot of access roads, to just get four-and-a-half miles."
There's still another three to four years of work to go between downtown and Interstate 820 on I-35W, but project and city leaders want to minimize the impacts.
"It's much short-term pain for long-term gain, but in the meantime how do we move around the city?" asked City Councilman Sal Espino, during Tuesday's council meeting.
North Tarrant Express, which is building both the segments between downtown and I-820 and between I-820 and U.S. Highway 287, said it's working hard to communicate with those possibly impacted by the construction and minimizing such impacts.
One example is the southbound exit to Meacham Boulevard, where engineers are actively working to find a way to keep it open throughout construction. Several other exits and on-ramps along the highway are currently closed and others will see closures as well.
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While work south of Loop 820 is just starting to take off, work north of it is moving along faster than anticipated.
During a report to the council on Tuesday, NTE said the project is 48 percent complete as of Thursday and is anticipated to be completed in 2016, more than a year ahead of schedule.
"That completion day has moved up significantly," Mayor Betsy Price said during the meeting.
"Oh, happy day," said Bishop Campbell, who drives I-35W regularly. "You have three or four miles of traffic that you just kind of tiptoe through it."
Slowly but surely those tiptoes won't be needed, but everyone said the construction is most definitely needed.
"It's all needed. We just have to be patient," Spivey said.
NTE said it is working hard to keep residents informed of closures and issues throughout construction. They plan to put more information online and on social media.
