At the February 12th Hwy 281 Superstreet meeting at the Encino Park Community Center, representatives of Pape-Dawson Engineers presented an idea to turn Hwy 281 north of Loop 1604 into a Superstreet that could reduce travel time by 40 to 60 percent.
The key selling point to the plan is that the Superstreet concept does not require additional right-of-way, therefore, construction can begin immediately. Additionally, the project would only take around 6 months to complete. The majority of the construction work can be accomplished without adding additional delays to the existing traffic because most of the work will be performed in the median and shoulders.
The plan would reconfigure the intersections at Encino Rio, Evans Road, Stone Oak Parkway and Marshall Road by removing East-West crossing of Hwy 281 and requiring drivers to make a protected right turn onto Hwy 281. Drivers would then proceed in the direction of travel or make a protected U-Turn to travel the opposite direction. Eliminating the East-West cross traffic reduces the number of traffic signal phases from six to two, is predicted to improve the highway's rating from an "F" to a "C", and increase through-put by at least 30 percent. In addition, the plan would improve safety by decreasing the number of potential collision points at each intersection from 32 to 14.
The Superstreet plan would lower emissions by reducing travel time and save drivers an estimated $14.1 million a year in time and gas costs ($70.5 million in savings if the Superstreet is used for 5 years). Because the Superstreet plan does not require the purchase of additional right-of-way, the estimated cost to implement the project is approximately $7.6 million.
San Antonio District 9 City Councilman Louis Rowe said he is trying to gather community support for the project. "It's not a permanent solution, but it's a Band-Aid that will decrease the amount of time we spend in traffic" Rowe said.
To show your support of the Hwy 281 Superstreet, please write or email Councilman Rowe.
