GEORGETOWN — The map of Williamson County’s Long-Range Transportation Plan looks more like a Rorschach test gone awry.
Dozens of lines, and hundreds of dots and dashes traverse the landscape from Round Rock to Taylor depicting current or proposed road construction. Some projects are nearing completion, others are being studied, and while not all are popular – like Corridor K – county officials say they are necessary to keep up with rapid growth.
Voters concur. In November, the electorate overwhelmingly passed Proposition A, an $825 million bond for 38 new road projects.
Supporters said it wasn’t a moment too soon, as there are 20 new applications for municipal utility districts countywide.
Williamson County Precinct 4 Commissioner Russ Boles said now is the time to plan.
The expansion is so fast, Boles said he’s often put in a position to react because roads are built a lot slower than homes.
Right now, Boles is looking to extend the Samsung Highway east to Texas 95 in response to the heavy congestion and accidents on FM 973, which bore the brunt of Samsung Austin Semiconductor construction in southwest Taylor.
Boles said there is some funding in the last bond for the project and he’s looking into other bonds and grants for the rest.
“I want to plan and lead people into the future. I’m never going to apologize for planning because it keeps people safe.” Boles said.
CORRIDOR K
Angela Wetuski feels happy when she looks out her back door in Granger, there are plenty of green spaces for her boys to run, wildflowers, even a creek runs through the family’s 80 acres.
About 200 feet from that backdoor is a barn, Corridor K would run right through that.
According to officials, Corridor K would connect with Interstate 35 at 95 and East Wilco Highway, but critics say its construction would be cutting through hundreds of acres of privately owned farmland used for grazing.
Wetuski heads up Preserve WilCo Now, a group formed in April and tasked with preventing what they view as overdevelopment in Williamson County.
Corridor K is on their radar. “With Samsung moving in, we have to protect and preserve what we can now,” Wetuski said.
Corridor K is in the planning stages; the county is conducting a right-of-way preservation study to determine road alignment and road section.
The county’s website indicates all of this is being done to determine the most reasonable route that minimizes impacts to the environment and properties.
The county has already moved the road north due to topography and reduced the size from 350-feet wide (six lanes) to 150 feet. Boles said there is no money for construction and probably wouldn’t be for at least five to 10 years.
None of this makes Wetuski feel any better, who worries the plans she had for her land are in jeopardy.
“I want this property to be more than just something I maintain. I want to provide nature trips, allow people to see the living stages of ladybugs,” “Wetuski said.
Boles is in a tough position. “I understand and am empathic with them, but I also understand developers are out there developing,” the commissioner said.
Wetuski and her associates have another view.
“When is enough development enough?” Wetuski said.
Since April she’s amassed 500 followers on her Preserve WilCo Now Facebook page.
She vowed to continue fighting against what she calls “Williamson County’s hard push to develop, without an eye on the future.”
“Everything I do is for my children. What we have is hope for the future,” Wetuski said.
FULL STEAM AHEAD THE EAST WILCO HIGHWAY
The East Wilco Highway has seven segments that will connect Texas 130 at CR 138 to U.S. 79 between Hutto and Taylor and then continue to I-35 north of Jarrell.
The county is completing the road in phases with several of the projects close to finishing.
CR 138 AT DANA DRIVE IN HUTTO
Texas 130 to CR 137 (formerly Southeast Loop Segment 1) includes a twolane road with a center turn lane from CR 138 at Dana Drive to CR 137.
The first phase of the project from Dana to 137 opened in 2023. The remaining work on 138 from Dana to 130, including adding a traffic signal, wraps this summer.
FM 3349 AT U.S. 79
The final phase of FM 3349 at 79 is set to open next summer.
The project includes widening 3349 and CR 101 into a four-lane divided roadway with a bridge over 79.
FM 3349 connects to the Samsung Highway and will service those needing to get to 973.
CR 366 WIDENING
This project is upgrading the existing two-lane roadway to a three-lane roadway with a turn lane and shoulders from Chandler Road (FM 1431) to just north of Carlos G. Parker Boulevard Northwest in Taylor.
The intersection with Parker will be realigned to eliminate the existing curve and upgraded to five lanes including turn lanes, shoulders and a traffic signal.
This project will be completed this summer, officials said.
ONDECK
Williamson County has many more projects ready to go; most are funded and are just being worked out.
A few begin this summer.
CR 137 TO CR 404 (FORMERLY SOUTHEAST LOOP SEGMENT 2) This segment will connect137 to 3349 at CR 404.
Currently in design, this segment will construct a new roadway with one lane in each direction and a center turn lane.
Construction will be funded through the 2023 Road Bond Program and is expected to begin sometime this summer, but county officials did not give an exact date.
CR 314 (I-35 FRONTAGE ROAD TO TURNOFF OF CR 314) The project will widen the existing two-lane roadway to a three-lane roadway with a continuous center turn lane and shoulders.
According to Williamson County organizers, construction begins this fall and should be completed by summer 2026.
CR 129
From south of Brushy Creek to north of the southern Williamson County line, parts of CR 129 have been closed to traffic since construction began in March.
Only property owners have been allowed to use the roadway.
Crews are busy reconstructing the lanes to 11 feet and adding 2-foot shoulders. Work will be completed in the fall.
CR 332
From 1,600 feet south of FM 487 to 2,000 feet north of CR 313, CR 332 was reconstructed as a two-lane roadway with shoulders; an additional two lanes will be added from FM 487 to 313.
Completion is slated for the fall.
Williamson County’s website has detailed descriptions of each project, with accompanying maps at www.wilcotx.gov.
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