East Wilco Highway Segment 3 opens to traffic
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Williamson County and the Texas Department of Transportation marked the end of construction on the East Wilco Highway Segment 3 project with a ribbon cutting Friday, ahead of its Saturday opening.
In just under three years of construction, the project turned the two-lane FM 3349 and CR 101 roadways into a four-lane roadway with bridges over US 79 and the Union Pacific Railroad. It also included a new interchange between US 79 and FM 3349/CR 101.
The changes are meant to make railroad crossings safer and more efficient, while allowing drivers to skip US 79 in Hutto. It also gives emergency services and school buses a faster way to reach their destination, and offers better connections between industrial and commercial sites.
Williamson County residents gave the full East Wilco Highway project the green light through the 2019 Road Bond and gave it more funding through a 2023 bond. TxDOT and the county funded the project jointly, with an estimated $80 million price tag for Segment 3.
The entire East Wilco Highway project consists of eight segments. Segment 1 opened in fall 2023, running from SH 130 to CR 137. Segment 2 started construction last fall and connects CR 137 to FM 3349. Construction is expected to last through summer 2027.
