TxDOT moving along with plans for IH 35 upper deck from Loop 410 near AT&T Pkwy to FM 1103

SAN ANTONIO (KTSA News) – Plans for an upper deck on IH 35 from Bexar to Comal and Guadalupe counties are moving along and the public got a sneak peak at a TxDOT open house event Thursday night. More than 150 people gathered around tables to view the plans and ask questions at Morgan’s Wonderland.

Jonathan Bean, TxDOT director of Transportation, Planning and Development for the San Antonio district, laid out details of the $2.1 billion project from Loop 410 near the San Antonio Military Medical Center to FM 1103 in the Schertz-Cibolo area.

“We’re expanding the roadway, mostly by elevated express lanes, 2 general purpose lanes and one HOV lane in both directions,” said Bean. “The project length is about 15 miles.”

Construction is scheduled to begin in the spring of 2021, and that’s what’s concerning some business owners along the corridor. Tory Davis, general manager of Rudy’s BBQ on IH 35 near Evans Road, was at the public hearing to find out more about the construction phase.

“We want to know how long the construction’s going to last and how bad it’s going to affect us,” Davis told KTSA News. “We know the end result is going to be good.”

Nicholas Wingerter is excited about the project.

“I’m in the freight and trucking industry and I’m very excited about this project because it’ll be very beneficial to the movement of commerce through and around San Antonio,” said Wingerter. “The efficiencies that will come to our industry will be extremely beneficial because of the quicker movement of freight in our community.”

Additional improvements include direct connectors to connect elevated lanes of IH 35 to Loop 410 South near AT&T Parkway. Another connector would be added on Loop 410 from Nacogdoches Road to IH 35 in the Northeast Side, anda third connector would be constructed on Loop 1604 at IH 35.