The FM 460 entrance ramp on the south side of Highway 80 has been known in Forney for years as a dangerous way to enter onto Highway 80. Most people try to avoid it because of the short highway entrance and the number of accidents that have occurred there over the years. The City of Forney is trying to work with TxDOT to finally fix the problem.
The FM 460 entrance ramp on the south side of Highway 80 has been known in Forney for years as a dangerous way to enter onto Highway 80. Most people try to avoid it because of the short highway entrance and the number of accidents that have occurred there over the years. The City of Forney is trying to work with TxDOT to finally fix the problem.
From 2010 thru October 2012 there have been 21 accidents in the area of Highway 80 and FM 460 related to the FM 460 entrance ramp. According to Forney PD, there was one fatality and eight injuries in that time period. The most recent accident at that location occurred when a big rig flipped over on September 23, 2012.
TxDOT is responsible for the highway and the entrance and exit ramps. When the City initially approached them about finding a solution to the problem, TxDOT felt that there had not been enough accidents at the location to make it a priority use of their limited funding. They have since consented to doing their part to help fix the problem.
According to Assistant City Manager Gina Nash, the City of Forney, in order to get the project moving, agreed to pay for the environmental assessment (EA), the schematic, and the design for the project. The cost is estimated to be $153,000 to the City, and though the funding has been set aside, the City Council will be voting on whether to approve that amount in the engineers contract at their meeting on October 16. On August 21 the Forney City Council voted to approve City Manager Brian Brooks to negotiate with the engineering and design firm of H.W. Lochner, Inc. for this project.
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The undertaking is being called the Liberty Hill project. It will consist of fixing the entrance and exit ramps for the south side of Highway 80 between FM 460 and FM 740. There is no set amount on construction cost yet because much of that depends upon the approved design. The cost is likely to be in excess of 2 million dollars. In the meantime, the City Manager and his staff will be looking for additional funding for the construction over the next several months, in case the amount TxDOT approves is not enough to cover the whole project.
According to Nash, Tx DOT has “tentatively slated some funding for construction in 2015.” Nash said, “While that sounds a long way off, the EA and schematic will take about a year. Once approved, it will take another year to design the project and get all the necessary approvals from TxDOT.” In the meantime, Nash has requested TxDOT consider adding more signage to the dangerous ramp. The signs could serve to let motorists know that the entrance ramp is short and they should use appropriate caution when attempting to enter onto the highway.
