For the first time since spring 2006, motorists driving on the south end of the Dallas North Tollway (DNT) will be able to use all six main lanes of traffic. By the end of August, all traffic lanes will be open from just south of Lemmon Avenue to the Interstate Highway (IH) 35E exit ramp.

 

“We hope our customers are just as thrilled as we are that all the main lanes south of Lemmon Avenue will be open by Labor Day,” said Elizabeth Mow, NTTA Director of Project Delivery. “We’d like to thank all of our customers for their patience during our construction.”

  

The $50 million project to renovate the oldest section of the DNT began in May 2006.

 

From Lemmon Avenue to Maple Avenue, crews are currently working to complete the median paving, the center median barrier and the permanent all-electronic toll collection (all-ETC) gantry columns.

 

The temporary toll collection gantry will remain in place during construction of the North Texas Tollway Authority’s (NTTA’s) new all-ETC gantries. A gantry is a bridge structure that holds toll equipment and spans all traffic lanes. In addition, the center median barrier, a longstanding DNT feature that helps prevent cross-over accidents, is being replaced as part of the project.

 

Work on the new gantries began in late June and will continue into mid-October. The electronic tolling equipment on a gantry collects information from electronic transponders or license plates. Tolls are charged via TollTag transponders at a lower rate or via ZipCash, a payment method for customers without a TollTag.

 

Once the new median barrier is in place, a final traffic switch will be needed in order to open the DNT’s third lane. As sections are completed in the northbound direction, three lanes will be opened from just south of Cedar Springs to Lemmon Avenue.

 

Meanwhile, from Maple Avenue toward IH-35E, crews are working to construct the DNT’s new southbound exit ramp to Oak Lawn Avenue. A northbound Oak Lawn Avenue entrance ramp also will be opened once work on Oak Lawn Avenue is completed. A southbound traffic switch occurred in mid-August from just south of Wycliff Avenue to IH-35E to allow access to construct the median from Wycliff Avenue to IH-35E. Workers are now constructing the new median pavement and center barrier. Once these items are finished, a final traffic switch will be needed from Lemmon Avenue to IH-35E to reopen the three lanes southbound.

 

Progress on the Oak Lawn Avenue project was forced to slow after crews discovered a previously unknown fiber optic line. That line has been relocated and work has now resumed in earnest. Westbound motorists are now traveling on new concrete paving, work will complete on the new westbound side by the end of the year..

           

“Our crews have battled multiple utility conflicts throughout their work on Oak Lawn to date,” Mow said. “However, now our crews are of the belief that all of the conflicts have been cleared and work on the westbound side will be able to move swiftly.”

           

Contractors are still on track for a late September to early October completion of Oak Lawn Avenue.