TxDOT to Explain Sun Bowl Drive Expansion Project at UTEP

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Published on Thursday, 29 November 2012 16:45

Commuters who regularly use Sun Bowl Drive can learn about the planned improvements to a portion of that road during a Texas Department of Transportation open house from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 4, in the El Paso Natural Gas Conference Center on the UTEP campus.

Attendees can review maps and other bilingual (English/Spanish) materials, ask TxDOT staff questions and offer input on the planned $4.4 million project. The plan is to widen Sun Bowl Drive from just south of the Don Haskins Center to just north of the Sun Bowl Parking Garage. The work is expected to begin in spring 2013.

The project will include an additional lane in each direction plus space for bicyclists, a roundabout at Sun Bowl Drive and Glory Road, lighting and sidewalks.

The project will provide better mobility to the University, said Eddie Valtier, TxDOT director of transportation, planning and development. He said the new designs were necessary to offset the area’s increased traffic demands, especially during special events.

The work will be done on land owned by The University of Texas at El Paso, which will pay 20 percent of the project that should go to bid in February 2013. Construction is expected to begin in May and last 10 months (five months on each side of the road).

Valtier said TxDOT would try to minimize the impact to UTEP traffic by maintaining single-lane access in both directions during construction.

People who plan to attend and need special accommodations to communicate should contact TxDOT by Friday, Nov. 30. 

Parking will be available in the University’s S-3 parking lot off Sun Bowl Drive.

Information: Antonio Uribe, TxDOT project manager, at 915-790-4407