Dallas Fort Worth Urban Forum

Freeway Lights May be Dark for Years in Dallas Construction Zones

Median lighting along I-35E has been cut by TxDOT in construction spots. The agency says the lights there may not return for a couple of years.

https://www.nbcdfw.com/traffic/stories/ ... 58601.html

FWIW... The DFW Connector project, which completed four and half years ago and links 121, 114, and 635 North of DFW airport, has NEVER had working lights. Perhaps the fact that they couldn't go with their standard high-mast lighting due to airport proximity made the lighting more 'complex' than it otherwise would have been. But lights are lights, and for TxDOT to 'finish' the project without working lights (or ensuring the contractor finished the job), is just wrong.

Amazing that those lights still aren't back on. It's dark as pitch in the unlit areas at night most nights.

muncien wrote:FWIW... The DFW Connector project, which completed four and half years ago and links 121, 114, and 635 North of DFW airport, has NEVER had working lights. Perhaps the fact that they couldn't go with their standard high-mast lighting due to airport proximity made the lighting more 'complex' than it otherwise would have been. But lights are lights, and for TxDOT to 'finish' the project without working lights (or ensuring the contractor finished the job), is just wrong.

You might find the following link very interesting....
http://onlinemanuals.txdot.gov/txdotmanuals/hwi/hwi.pdf

To summarize that long pdf, TXDOT rarely funds highway lighting, it relies upon city and county governments to fund the construction and maintenance of them.

electricron wrote:

muncien wrote:FWIW... The DFW Connector project, which completed four and half years ago and links 121, 114, and 635 North of DFW airport, has NEVER had working lights. Perhaps the fact that they couldn't go with their standard high-mast lighting due to airport proximity made the lighting more 'complex' than it otherwise would have been. But lights are lights, and for TxDOT to 'finish' the project without working lights (or ensuring the contractor finished the job), is just wrong.

You might find the following link very interesting....
http://onlinemanuals.txdot.gov/txdotmanuals/hwi/hwi.pdf

To summarize that long pdf, TXDOT rarely funds highway lighting, it relies upon city and county governments to fund the construction and maintenance of them.

Great information... Thanks!

So, it appears that most of the faulty lighting falls within the City of Grapevine. So, either they haven't maintained the lighting, or there is some other 'special' agreement that puts the responsibility elsewhere. The fact that the lights have NEVER worked is the biggest concern to me. These agreements are made way before the project finishes, and surely the lights should have worked when the construction was complete... regardless of any faults afterwards. Too weird...

I did notice that there are about six high-mast lights in this project... only one of them works. Pretty much all the standard lighting has been off for as long as I can remember.

High mast lighting needs to be put on 635 in Irving/Coppell. Loop 12 North of I-30 in Irving and on I-20 in parts of Tarrant County.