AUSTIN – With the turn of shovels, TxDOT officially began construction on the Oak Hill Parkway project today. Decades in the making, the Oak Hill Parkway project will accommodate current and future growth by adding lanes for drivers traveling through Oak Hill, as well as frontage roads for local traffic. The project will also remove traffic signals on the mainlanes and construct flyovers between US 290 and SH 71.

“It’s taken more than 30 years of planning. Thirty years of discussing and talking about a traffic solution for this area,” said J. Bruce Bugg, Jr., Texas Transportation Commission chairman. “We’re here today because it’s time to stop planning to do. It’s time to do.”

At US 290 and William Cannon Drive, traffic volume has increased by nearly 50 percent since 1990.

“The Central Texas region has desperately needed the Oak Hill Parkway project for decades,” said Ashby Johnson, Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization executive director. “This project can’t come soon enough to support the tremendous growth in Hays, Burnet, Travis and Blanco counties.”

The Oak Hill Parkway project will also include 15 miles of paths for bicyclists and pedestrians.

“During the decades of project planning, TxDOT listened to the community and implemented input where feasible,” said TxDOT Austin District Engineer Tucker Ferguson. “As a result, this community-focused design addresses the mobility and safety needs along with community values.”

The $674 million non-tolled Texas Clear Lanes project is expected to complete in early 2026, weather permitting. The design-build contractor is Colorado River Constructors.