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12 | NEWS | Community Impact Newspaper • Round Rock/Pflugerville/Hutto Edition Comprehensive cancer care is available right here in Central Texas. Amy Valentine, breast cancer patient “Having everything in one place made getting treatment so much easier and more comfortable.” F I GHT CANCER A busy mother, Amy Valentine didn’t have time for breast cancer. The comprehensive care approach at Texas Oncology made fi ghting cancer a lot easier. “Your life really revolves around cancer, so it’s so much more comfortable when you have just one place to go for lab tests, chemotherapy and radiation. I got excellent care, and I really loved my oncologist.” Now, three years later, Amy is back to life as usual and feels great. AUSTIN • BASTROP • CEDAR PARK • KILLEEN • KYLE • LAKEWAY • MARBLE FALLS • ROUND ROCK • SAN MARCOS • SMITHVILLE 1-888-864-I CAN (4226) • www.TexasOncology.com/Austin HOW TEXANS FIGHT CANCER. Join uS For hallowEEn! book your holiday party now Costume Contest Saturday, october 27th $1000 in cash and prizes live Music from Susan arbuckle ZEd’S. It’S YouR PlaCE. 501 Canyon Ridge Drive | 512.339.ZEDS (9337) www.zeds.bz
tRAnSPORtAtiOn Round Rock taking steps to alleviate I-35 congestion By JP Eichmiller It is no secret that traffic along I-35 in Round Rock is a problem. Rush-hour commuters are accustomed to backups in both directions of the interstate and along the exits. The issue is compounded by the fact the interstate is managed by the Federal Highway Administration, and most of the arterials connecting with it fall under the Texas Department of Transportation’s jurisdiction— meaning the city must receive approval from either state or federal authorities, or sometimes both, to conduct major roadway improvements. “The reality is our job is to improve the mobility for the citizens of Round Rock,” Round Rock Transportation Director Gary Hudder said. “It’s not [commuters’] fault that our community is made up of a network of roads that are owned by different people. To them that is meaningless at the end of the day. They want to get from where they are to where they want to go to, and they don’t care who it belongs to.” The first step in solving the traffic issues, according to city Transportation Department officials, was identifying the source of the city’s congestion. “[I-35] floated to the top of our list of problems when we went to review the planning process a year and a half ago,” said Chad Wood, Round Rock city traffic engineer. “We call this the biggest problem in town because of the ripple effect. These problems ripple out, just like a pebble in water.” The end result, according to the city, is traffic congestion both on I-35 and along the roads it connects with. “The significant traffic problems we have all of the time are all associated with I-35,” said John Dean, Round Rock Transportation Department planner. “You can consider [I-35] like a spine. If your spine is hurt, everything else is messed up as a result of it.” When the city’s engineers began studying what was occurring on I-35, they recognized several flaws in the highway’s architecture. Several of the exit and entrance Round Rock ’s I-35 ‘ramp reversal’ • PROJECT • While the I-35 corridor through Round Rock is not broken, it is certainly in need of repair, city transportation officials said. The first step the city has identified in alleviating the congestion is reversing the placement of the entrance and exit ramps on I-35 between Hwy. 79 and FM 3406 and adding an additional lane to the southbound and northbound frontage roads. project overview: 1 Proposed northbound 3 Proposed northbound 5 I-35 exit ramp: I-35 entrance ramp: This ramp is intended to allow motor- This ramp allows traffic from the ists access to more businesses along frontage road to exit before the FM the I-35 northbound frontage road and 3406 intersection, thereby reducing decrease congestion at FM 3406. congestion at the stoplight. 2 Proposed northbound I-35 4 Proposed southbound 6 frontage road expansion: I-35 exit ramp: The additional lane will allow motorists This ramp is intended to open south- entering and exiting the frontage road bound I-35 frontage road businesses to to use their own lane instead of being increased traffic from I-35 and reduce forced to merge with through traffic. congestion at the Hwy. 79 intersection. ramps were designed and put into place when Round Rock could still be considered a rural community. “That was great in 1975, when there was literally a tenth of the people living in Round Rock,” Wood said. “But when you grow tenfold, you’ve got to modernize the traffic system, or otherwise it’s not going to work.” The first step in the city’s plan is what is what the Transportation Department is referring to as a “ramp reversal” project. The idea is to switch the locations of interstate entrance and exit ramps to better accommodate the flow of traffic. The city’s Transportation Department has identified four locations between Hwy. 79 and FM 3406 it would like to redesign. “This plan is similar to other segments of I-35 already existing today, so this is really bringing us into compliance,” Hudder said. “We’re hopeful this will help and alleviate some of the congestion.” An added benefit to the project will be the increased access to businesses along I-35’s frontage roads. With the current placement of the ramps, motorists exiting the interstate bypass most of the businesses between Hwy. 79 and FM 3406. The proposed configuration will move commuters onto the frontage roads earlier and increase traffic to local businesses. The planned addition of a third lane to the frontage roads should also help relieve backups at the exits and entrances, city officials believe. “The benefit is when you put this entrance ramp back ... all of this area now is exposed to the traffic from the freeway,” Dean said. “Every one of these businesses (on the frontage roads) now have access to this traffic. This ramp configuration will allow you to exit … see businesses and patronize them.” The last step before moving forward with construction is attaining consent from state and federal agencies. “[TxDOT] has to approve it, and you have to get approval from the Federal Highway Administration—it’s a two-step process,” Dean said. “And it’s done to their liking, or it is not done.” Purpose: To ease congestion along Round Rock’s I-35 entrance and exit ramps and open access to businesses along frontage roads Estimated construction start date: Early 2013 Estimated time of construction: 18 months Estimated cost: $8.5 million I-35 ramp removals: Four—two northbound and two southbound I-35 ramp additions: Four—two northbound and two southbound Lane additions: Two—one each on I-35 northbound and southbound frontage roads between Hwy. 79 and FM 3406 Proposed southbound I-35 frontage road expansion: The additional lane is intended to relieve congestion caused by motorists entering and exiting I-35. Proposed southbound I-35 entrance ramp: This ramp allows motorists the opportunity to exit the frontage road before reaching the Hwy. 79 intersection. Source: Round Rock transportation department Cracker Barrel Rudy’s 3406 Chuy’s Hilton Garden Inn Saltgrass Steak House La Quinta Country Inn & Suites Round Rock West Gattiland IHOP Red Roof Inn Value Place Existing entrance ramp removal Brake Specialists La Margarita Existing exit ramp removal 4 5 6 35 3 2 1 Old Settlers Blvd. Round Rock Auto Group Cinemark Movies 8 Fuddrucker’s Texas Ave. Best Western Executive Inn Sirloin Stockade Arby’s 79 Mays St. YMCA Bowman Rd. Prudential Texas Realty Golden Palace Chinese Restaurant Chase Bank Chevron McDonald’s NEWS | 13 Existing exit ramp removal Existing entrance ramp removal KFC Dairy Queen Map not to scale Round Rock East
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Page 5 and 6: 17 Wild Bill’s Liquor at 602 McNe
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Page 27 and 28: educAtiOn By Korri Kezar Officials
Page 29 and 30: Texas’ U.S. Senate 2008 2006 2002
Page 31 and 32: David Prout A. I’m running for Ci
Page 33 and 34: dining Pita Fusion Round Rock resta
Page 35 and 36: cOffee With iMPAct Gary Hoover Aust
Page 37 and 38: Business Texas wine industry grows
Page 39 and 40: ReAl eStAte Market Data On the mark

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