Three quickly growing cities in Tarrant County have been faced with a unique problem that called for a collaborative and innovative solution.
Traffic at the intersection of Heritage Avenue and Cheek Sparger Road (approximately 1/2 mile west of Texas 121) has increased exponentially over the past few years. That intersection is the point where Bedford, Colleyville and Euless meet and no one city controls the entire intersection.
Tarrant County Precinct 3 Commissioner Gary Fickes explained that the intersection desperately needed a traffic signal. Construction on the signal should begin by summer 2020.
"It’s a terrible intersection where we have a lot of traffic, a lot of movement, a lot of left turns against the traffic and so it is really going to be a great opportunity to solve a problem there," Fickes said.
But the cities had to figure out how to pay for the signal, since they are all responsible for it. While much of the intersection is in Bedford, to the west is Colleyville and to the south is Euless.
"Combine all that and you’ve got high traffic counts, a lot of traffic movement with the turning movement –- no signalization," Fickes said.
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The solution is to split the bill with help from Tarrant County and developer Trinity Union with a total cost of around $275,000.
While Bedford police would handle much of the enforcement all three cities will have a stake.
"My guess is when a wreck happens and those 40 people that call 911 on their cellphones, you’ll probably get a response from all 3 cities," Fickes said.
