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Project Profile: 35Express

35Express

photo credit: AGL Constructors

Location

Dallas, Texas

Project Sponsor

Texas Department of Transportation

Program Areas

Alternative Project DeliveryProject FinanceTolling and PricingTIFIA

Mode

Highway / Express Lanes

Description

The 35Express project includes nearly 30 miles of improvements to heavily congested I-35E between US 380 in Denton and I-635 in the northwest corner of Dallas. This corridor serves hundreds of thousands of commuters, handles substantial daily truck traffic, and is a primary link to major universities in the city of Denton, including the fourth-largest university in the state, the University of North Texas. The project will also add frontage roads across Lake Lewis, which will improve north-south commuting options.

In its ultimate configuration, the $4.8 billion project would rebuild the full corridor while adding tolled express lanes to provide a reliable alternative to the general purpose lanes and frontage roads. The project is proposed to be constructed in phases Phase 1's elements include:

  • Construction of two reversible managed toll lanes (express lanes) with associated exit/entrance ramps between Valley View Lane just north of I-635 and Turbeville Road/Hundley Drive 16.5 miles to the north
  • Addition of express lane connectors between I-35E and the existing LBJ Express along I-635
  • Reconfiguration and rehabilitation of general purpose lanes from IH635 to Corinth Parkway, 20 miles to the north
  • Reconfiguration and/or widening of general purpose lanes and the construction of an additional general purpose lane in each direction from Sam Rayburn Tollway (SH 121) to US 380 (21 miles)
  • Construction of direct connectors to Sam Rayburn Tollway (SH 121)
  • Construction of a collector-distributor system between President George Bush Turnpike and Sam Rayburn Tollway (SH 121)
  • Construction, reconstruction, widening, or rehabilitation of various frontage roads, interchanges, and bridges
  • Construction of a new southbound bridge over Lewisville Lake with four general purpose lanes, two reversible express lanes, two frontage road lanes, and a pedestrian walkway; reconfiguration of the existing north and southbound bridges to carry all northbound traffic on four general purpose lanes, two frontage road lanes, and a pedestrian walkway
  • Associated mitigation projects
Cost

$1.4 billion (Phase 1)

Funding Sources

Federal funds - $460 million

TIFIA Loan - $285 million

Regional toll revenue (SH 121) - $534 million

Other state funding - $160 million

Local funding - $14 million

Project Delivery / Contract Method

Design-build

Private Partner

Design-build joint - AGL Constructors

  • Archer Western Contractors, LLC
  • Granite Construction, Inc.
  • The Lane Construction Corporation
  • Parsons
  • HDR, Inc.
Project Advisors / Consultants

To TxDOT

  • Financial Advisors - KPMG
  • Legal Advisors - McCall, Parkhurst & Horton LLP and Nossaman LLP

To USDOT TIFIA JPO

  • TIFIA Financial Advisor - Taylor DeJongh
  • TIFIA Legal Advisor - Nixon Peabody LLP
Lenders

USDOT TIFIA

Duration / Status

Design-build contract awarded December 2012.

Design notice to proceed issued May 2013.

Construction began October 2013.

New southbound Lewisville Lake Bridge opened in September 2016.

Substantial completion expected mid-2017.

TIFIA Credit Assistance

Direct loan: $285 million.

The TIFIA loan will be repaid through a pledge of the project's gross toll revenues.

Financial Status

The TIFIA credit agreement was signed on November 3, 2016. Principal repayment of the TIFIA loan will begin with substantial completion of delivery and will amortize through a 30-year maturity with the final maturity anticipated in 2052.

Innovations
  • The 35Express will add to the Dallas Fort Worth's regional express lane network (TEXpress) that provides reliable travel throughout many of the region's most congested corridors.
Related Links / Articles

Project Website

TxDOT Project Website

Contacts

Jennifer Wright
Project Finance and Debt Program Manager
Texas Department of Transportation
Tel: (512) 463-8946
jennifer.wright@txdot.gov

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