Our County On the Move: Message from Rockwall County Judge David Sweet

Rockwall County Judge David Sweet

(ROCKWALL, TX – Aug. 30, 2016) Commissioner David Magness recently made the observation that Lake Ray Hubbard and Interstate 30 are extremely important to Rockwall County: We are defined by our beautiful lake – and if I-30 didn’t go through here, Rockwall County wouldn’t be what it is today.

I invited Commissioner David Magness to contribute comments about county transportation projects to this column. He is the leader of our County Transportation Planning Consortium, working with members of the Commissioners Court and representatives from each city council on the county’s transportation plan.

The Texas Department of Transportation agrees with his statement, especially the importance of I-30 to its major transportation plan. TxDOT has announced plans to reconstruct I-30 through Rockwall County as the initial project for the planned upgrade of I-30 from downtown Dallas east to the state line.

I-30 currently carries approximately 100,000 vehicles per day into Rockwall and 50,000 vehicles per day through Fate and Royse City.

The project, which is estimated to cost $750 million, will have no toll components. The project will run from Bass Pro Drive eastward to FM 2642, which is just east of the Rockwall/Hunt County line. The highway will have four lanes each direction from Bass Pro Drive to SH 205 and will have three lane frontage roads each direction across the lake. The project calls for three main lanes each direction from SH 205 eastward to FM 2642, with new one way frontage roads across the county. The project scope includes a new westbound entrance ramp between Horizon and FM 740. A public meeting is expected to be held in November, and let date is projected for December 2021.

TxDOT has also announced plans to upgrade SH 205 across Rockwall County. A route for SH-205 through the city of Rockwall has not been decided, but a well-attended public meeting was held in July in Rockwall and a second meeting in Terrell so Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) officials could hear from residents. Currently under consideration is the potential to bring John King Blvd. up to state standards so it would become SH-205, thus taking it around the City of Rockwall and out of the center of our historic downtown. That would return Goliad Street, currently designated as SH-205, to the City of Rockwall.

The $200 million project would involve widening SH 205 from a two-lane rural to four lanes urban-divided with allowance for an ultimate six lanes. The project has been divided into two phases, with the southern phase running from SH 80 in Terrell to FM-549, and the northern phase from FM-549 to Lavon. The state is currently doing schematics and engineering for the project. Let date is anticipated to be February 2021.

Proposition 7, which was approved by voters in November 2015, is providing funding for work on these and other state road projects in our area and around the state.

We are proud that there is an incredible relationship between TxDOT and Rockwall County, and that we have worked together with officials from each city in Rockwall County to have a unified transportation plan. We’re also very proud of the vision and teamwork between the county and each one of its cities as we all act as one in prioritization of projects.

Over the next few months the county will work with engineering firms for the projects and discuss phasing. I-30 must be a user friendly improvement project – that is a priority. We expect any economic impacts to be minimal.

These two major projects will make a positive impact on this wonderful county along with several other road projects also scheduled. If you are interested in learning about any or all of the projects, please go to the county website, rockwallcountytexas.com, and follow the prompts to the road consortium.

Submitted guest column by Rockwall County Judge David Sweet.

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