QUESTION: Is there an estimated timeframe for completing the expansion of Interstate 20 from four lanes to six lanes?
ANSWER: Reporter Jordan Green recently wrote about the I-20 expansion project as it pertains to Gregg and Smith counties based on what Gregg County Judge Bill Stoudt said about it during his State of the County address in October.
He said: 性视界传媒淚nterstate 20 will be widened to six lanes through Gregg and Smith counties. That性视界传媒檚 been a big project that性视界传媒檚 been on the governor性视界传媒檚 radar It性视界传媒檚 one of his priority projects with TxDOT. And we were just notified, after delays through COVID, that it is on track. Money性视界传媒檚 been appropriated. And they性视界传媒檒l start beginning the work and the engineering this year.性视界传媒
I checked with the Texas Department of Transportation to see if I could get a more concrete timeline and other details. A lot of work is planned in that corridor in the coming years, but there aren性视界传媒檛 firm details and not all of it is fully funded yet.
I did think it was first worth noting how we got here: The Texas Department of Transportation Transportation Planning and Programming Division began working on the the I-20 Texas Corridor Study in 2021 as a 性视界传媒渓ong性视界传媒憆ange, holistic review of this nationally significant interstate corridor,性视界传媒 information from TxDOT says. The study area was broken into segments from the Interstate 10 junction in Reeves County to the Texas-Louisiana state line in Harrison County, including an East Texas Workforce Group.
A letter from that group that Stoudt signed said, 性视界传媒淚n the Tyler and Longview area, traffic volumes are expected to increase over the course of the next two decades, while Longview still lacks continuous frontage roads and experiences issues with flooding. Increased industrial activity along the East I-20 Corridor is acutely present, which will require accommodation for increased vertical clearance to prevent bridge strikes by oversized trucks.性视界传媒
Our local TxDOT district said the work in Smith and Gregg counties will be broken into smaller projects, some that already have funding and some that don性视界传媒檛.
Two consultants are working to complete the schematic and environmental phase for the six-lane project in each county. Once that性视界传媒檚 done, the plans, specifications and funding estimates will completed for projects in the two counties 性视界传媒 probably 10 projects total. Those projects won性视界传媒檛 start for a some time. Right of way acquisition must be completed along with utility relocations.
Bids for the first six-lane project likely won性视界传媒檛 go out for bid until 2030, but TxDOT says it will try to move projects projects up once utility work is complete and they are fully funded. (Similar projects are happening or planned across the state.)
A separate project is taking place on I-20 at the Texas 31 interchange in Gregg County that will go out for bids in 2025. Right of way acquisition and utility work is already proceeding. It性视界传媒檚 fully funded and would widen I-20 to six lanes within that project性视界传媒檚 limits, but it is not part of the six-lane widening project.
It would make multiple direct connections to I-20.
Read the entire I-20 Texas Corridor Study at .
