This article was originally published in The Examiner on Oct. 6, 2016.
By Eleanor Skelton
Staff Writer
The Texas Department of Transportation announced Sept. 29 that plans are being made to widen I-10 from Winnie to Hamshire Road.
The Texas Transportation Commission awarded a $43 million contract to Williams Brothers Construction. This project is the first phase in a series of four that will expand I-10 from two lanes to three lanes from Winnie to Beaumont.
“We are still in the planning phases for the other three projects, so we don’t have an estimated cost yet on those and we’re not sure which section is going to come next,” said Sarah Dupre with Beaumont TxDOT. Dupre said that TxDOT’s goal is to start one phase out of the four each year, but plans are not definite yet.
“I do anticipate lane closure,” Dupre said. “But we like to try to keep those closures to night time; that way it’s not going to impact traffic as much as it does during the day.”
TxDOT plans to widen I-10 from the inside, taking out the median, which means TxDOT will not need to purchase right of way or change frontage roads, Dupre explained.
Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2017 and last about four years.
Eleanor Skelton 