The Texas Department of Transportation has identified around $100 billion in infrastructure projects across the state for the next 10 years as part of its 2024 Unified Transportation Plan. The department’s Fort Worth district is poised to receive over $2 billion in funding.
Here is where those dollars could be headed in Tarrant County.
The Unified Transportation Plan is the state’s guide to which projects will get funded across Texas over the next 10 years. This plan is updated annually and approved by the Texas Transportation Commission.
The goal of the plan, TxDOT officials said, is to increase funding in areas such as safety, the energy sector, rural and urban connectivity and border infrastructure. It also addresses maintenance and preservation issues.
Projects are selected by TxDOT and local transportation groups based on how well improvements will address criteria such as safety, road capacity and connectivity. However, not all projects in the document are guaranteed to be built.
The district allocates the funding. The Fort Worth district includes the following counties: Erath, Hood, Jack, Johnson, Palo Pinto, Parker, Somervell, Tarrant and Wise.
A majority of the projects identified in the 2024 plan were also in previous iterations of the document.
Among the major renovations planned in Tarrant County and listed in the unified plan is the addition and reconfiguration of main lanes along Interstate 30 from Interstate 820 to Linkcrest Drive. Work along state Highway 199 also is planned from White Settlement Road to Lake Worth. In Arlington, lanes will be added to I-30.
In Fort Worth, projects include work along East Lancaster Avenue and U.S. 287 from Village Creek Road to Berry Street.
The plan also identifies funding for other transportation needs like public transit, airports, rail and ports. TxDOT is expected to allocate $45.2 million in state funds for public transportation across Texas. Those grants have not yet been allocated.
Tarrant County Commissioner Manny Ramirez said this investment from the state toward local infrastructure is “critical to the continued prosperity of Tarrant County.”
“We have a unique opportunity to not only catch up with our explosive growth but to get ahead of it,” Ramirez said, who also sits on the Regional Transportation Council. “With this investment, we can look 30 years into the future and build the roads before the rooftops.”
Sandra Sadek is a Report for America corps member, covering growth for the Fort Worth Report. You can contact her at sandra.sadek@fortworthreport.org or on Twitter at @ssadek19.
At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
Noncommercial entities may republish our articles for free by following our guidelines. For commercial licensing, please email hello@fortworthreport.org.
