It’s no secret that traffic in southern Denton County is well ahead of the area’s infrastructure. The situation in Northlake is no different, especially with roadwork going on at Mulkey Lane and Gibbs Road that is causing tempers to flare.
“I’ve heard you,” said Northlake Mayor Brian Montini to residents in a statement posted to social media. “The changes underway around Gibbs Road and Mulkey Lane are frustrating, and for many of you they may create real, daily headaches.”
In another post to social media on Saturday, Montini laid out plans the town came up with to mitigate the traffic pains.
The first phase aims to re-stripe Mulkey and Gibbs by Wednesday to improve traffic flow and reduce unnecessary conflicts within the intersection.
A second phase will add temporary traffic signals at the intersection by Saturday that can be adjusted during peak traffic times.
“As soon as possible, the temporary signal light trailers will be replaced with wire-strung signals on poles,” said Montini.
The third phase will begin the process of adding pavement at the northeast corner of the intersection, which will allow construction of a protected, free-flowing right turn lane from westbound Mulkey to northbound Gibbs.
At that point, permanent traffic signals will be installed, which will be paid for by Pecan Square developer Hillwood, per its development agreement with the town.
“The Town will likely fund the additional right-of-way and lane expansion necessary to go beyond the original scope and deliver a more complete solution,” said Montini. “A final estimated completion date will be shared once engineering and property coordination are complete.”
According to Montini, the pain commuters are feeling today don’t just stem from current construction.
Work on Mulkey and Gibbs was part of a development agreement in 2017 when Pecan Square was approved, which put the developer in charge of expanding the roads to four lanes in some sections.
Northlake hoped to have other TxDOT regional projects done before work on Mulkey and Gibbs started, but that didn’t happen.
The state delayed many TxDOT projects like FM 407, FM 1171 and I-35W and changed its policy on non-perpendicular bridge configurations over interstates, directly impacting work on Mulkey, which is supposed to cross I-35W.
“Northlake can advocate and coordinate, but we do not control TxDOT’s schedules, right-of-way timelines, funding or design requirements,” said Montini. “A significant amount of regional traffic is using Gibbs to avoid FM 407 and I-35W. At the same time, major county and state projects that were planned to relieve pressure have been delayed due to TxDOT’s letting schedule policy.”
However, Northlake and county officials have advocated to provide some relief with work starting soon on the FM 407 Micro Breakout project, which will add turn lanes and other improvements at the congested I-35W/FM 407 intersection.
Denton County approves $2 million contract for FM 407 at I-35W improvements
Northlake’s Town Council also plans to discuss additional ways to improve traffic flow at the March 12 council meeting.
“These improvements will substantially increase the number of vehicles that clear the intersection during each signal cycle and significantly reduce delays,” said Montini. “The timeline will be determined after council is presented with all of the information and planning has been done.”
With immense growth like Northlake is seeing, Montini said it is natural for municipalities to experience some growing pains, but referred to the Master Thoroughfare Plan as a guide through rapid regional growth.
“We cannot flip the entire system overnight, but we can keep building the network responsibly, keep the right parties accountable and reduce the burden on residents as quickly as possible,” he said. “I drive these roads, too and sit in the endless backups. The Town Council and I feel the same frustration you do and I can promise this: we are working aggressively to to minimize the temporary impacts, protect taxpayers and deliver the long-term traffic relief this community deserves.”
Montini also said the town will not make the same mistake again, which led to the traffic issues.
“In the spirit of learning from our mistakes, I have directed staff to never assume a project outside of our direct control will be done by a certain time,” he said. “We must do the best we can without the potential help from others clouding our view.”
