Looping 820 Widening / North Tarrant Express
The widening of Loop 820 in North Richland Hills is part of a larger project to improve mobility in Northeast Tarrant County. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has named this 36-mile project the North Tarrant Express. The project, estimated at $2 billion, will reconstruct and add lanes on I-35W, Loop 820 and SH 121/183, including express toll-managed lanes. The North Tarrant Express is needed to accommodate the increasing transportation demand in our region. In addition, the development of this project will greatly reduce congestion, enhance safety, expand economic opportunity, improve air quality and increase the value of the region's transportation assets.
On June 23, 2009 TxDOT officials executed the comprehensive development agreement with (CDA) with NTE Mobility Partners to plan, finance, design, construct, operate and maintain Phase 1 of the North Tarrant Express Project, which includes 13 miles of Northeast Loop 820 and State Highway 121/183 from Interstate 35W to the State Highway 121 split. In addition, a second CDA was executed under which NTEMP will provide financial and development plans to improve the rest of the corridor. The CDAs were conditionally awarded by the Texas Transportation Commission to NTEMP on January 29, 2009. Prior to execution, the contracts were reviewed and approved by the Texas Legislative Budget Board and the Texas Attorney General's Office. In addition, TxDOT staff reviewed financial information related to the agreement with members of the community at a public hearing in Fort Worth and shared its traffic and revenue report for the project with the State Auditor's Office.
Under this agreement, NTE Mobility Partners will rebuild the existing Northeast Loop 820 and 121/183 highways, add two toll-managed “express” lanes in each direction, improve frontage roads and add auxiliary lanes along the corridor. Managed lane ramps from north and southbound 35W to Loop 820 will also be added to provide mobility improvements to that interchange’s bottleneck. Construction is expected to begin in late 2010 and be cpen to traffic in 2015.
For a state investment of approximately $570 million, these improvements will provide $2 billion of needed infrastructure to the Fort Worth area, as well as operations and maintenance over the next 52 years, valued at $450 million. A project map and additional information is available on the TxDOT web site. Questions regarding right of way and land acquisition should be directed to the Texas Department of Transportation.
A coalition of concerned citizens, business and land owners, developers and local and state officials are working together to keep the North Tarrant Express project moving forward. This group is known as the 35W Coalition. For more information please visit www.35wcoalition.com.
