Work starts on a $111 million four-lane rebuild of US 377 through Argyle, while the Aubrey stretch still has no construction money

Construction is underway on a long-planned widening of US 377 through Argyle, on the highway that links Aubrey and Denton with Fort Worth.

Work began Oct. 13 on the section from Crawford Road and Country Club Road south to FM 1171 in Flower Mound, the Cross Timbers Gazette reported Friday. The two-lane rural highway is being rebuilt as a four-lane divided road, with an overpass at FM 1171. The Texas Department of Transportation expects to finish in 2029, according to the Gazette.

The numbers behind the job

Denton County's September transportation report for Commissioner Precinct 4 lays out the contract. The project went out for bids May 6 and was awarded to Webber LLC, the low bidder at about $111.4 million. Total construction funding listed for the section is about $173 million, drawn from three TxDOT funding categories. The contract allows 876 working days, with 36 months of barricades.

Most utility lines are already clear of the work zone, the report says. Charter/Spectrum and CoServ Electric were still moving lines but were not expected to hold up construction.

The project has been a long time coming. The schematic design was approved in January 2018, environmental clearance followed in March 2019 and land purchases wrapped up in March 2021, the county report shows. The Gazette notes the bid date had already slipped once, from 2022 to 2023, before the project finally let this year.

South of FM 1171, and north in Aubrey

The next piece south, called the Creek Section, runs about 3.7 miles from south of FM 1171 to James Street. It has an approved schematic and environmental clearance, but the county report lists its construction funding as $0, with an estimated cost of about $94.9 million.

The same is true on Aubrey's end of the highway. The county's September report for Precinct 1 lists the planned six-lane rebuild of US 377 from US 380 to north of Business US 377 at an estimated $362.1 million in construction costs, with no construction money and a bid date marked "pending funding." That report projects land buying and final plans finishing in September 2029.

In Argyle, the widening is expected to open land along the highway to development, including the planned Furst Ranch community near US 377 and FM 1171, the Gazette reported.

Sources

Cross Timbers Gazette

dentoncounty.gov

dentoncounty.gov