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Bush Turnpike Extension Construction Gains Speed Construction is now underway on four of the five sections of the President George Bush Turnpike’s Eastern Extension (PGBT EE).
Contractors for Sections 28 in Garland and 29 in Sachse and Rowlett received notices to proceed in January and were green lighted to begin work on February 10. Work was already occurring on Section 30, also in Rowlett, and Section 32, the bridge over Dallas’ Lake Ray Hubbard to Interstate 30 (IH 30).
A preconstruction meeting for the final piece of the extension, Section 31, is expected to take place in late February.
Meanwhile, once the Section 28 and 29 contractors have placed traffic warning signs and barricades, visible activity will include utility identification and relocation, and land clearing and grubbing – digging up roots and tree stumps.
Section 28 runs from west of State Highway (SH) 78 to west of Miles Road. Section 29 is from west of Miles Road to north of future Merritt Road/Liberty Grove Road connector.
Major earthwork on Section 28 is awaiting completion of an archeological dig at Rowlett Creek. Archeologists are collecting artifacts at a representative location within the site and then cleaning, cataloguing and curating them. A final report will be prepared and submitted to the Texas Historical Commission. You can read the full story on the dig here.
The first major earthwork on Section 29 will be at the southeast end of the section. Contractors will prepare areas for constructing drainage culverts and excavate below grade up to where the new roadway will pass under Miles Road.
In Section 30, which began construction last October, contractors have moved the J.E. Coyle Farmstead from the southwest corner of Main Street and Kirby Road to Pecan Grove Park, a third of a mile east on Main Street, next to the Rowlett Community Centre. Finish work on the site is ongoing, such as walkway construction, tree planting and some reconstruction of various structures.
A temporary traffic signal is being installed at Main and Kirby to reduce congestion and improve traffic flow around the Rowlett High School campus. The signal is expected be functional by March.
Farther north in Section 30, contractors are making progress on constructing culverts, installing moisture-treated subgrade on the main lanes, building retaining walls and laying sanitary sewer line pipe.
The PGBT EE is a joint project of the NTTA and the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), which is constructing Section 32. When completed, the 9.9-mile segment will extend the PGBT from SH 78 in Garland east and south to IH 30. The six-lane toll road will pass through Garland, Rowlett and Sachse and will include the one-mile bridge over Dallas' Lake Ray Hubbard. The project is expected to open in late 2011.
For a monthly project update, please go to www.ntta.org/AboutUs/Projects/ and click on the “PGBT Eastern Extension” Corridor Progress Report.
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