Cedar Park, Wilco Officials Cut Ribbon On Key Road Project

CEDAR PARK, TX — City and county officials gathered this week for a ribbon-cutting ceremony ushering in the extended New Hope Drive.

The lengthening of the artery stretches the roadway from Cottonwood Creek Trail to Ronald Reagan Boulevard. A ceremony marking the project took place on Tuesday, June 25.

The New Hope Drive extension provides additional capacity for east-west traffic through the city while providing greater access to an area that has emerged as a major technology hub in the form of the La Jaita and Arrow Point business parks.

“This project will take the pressure off of RM 1431 and help people get around Cedar Park a lot easier," Cedar Park Mayor Corbin Van Arsdale said. "This was a partnership with the County and we paid for this with our voter-approved 2015 bond package. It’s always nice when the City and County can get together and solve problems.”

Related story: Cedar Park Celebrates New Hope Drive Extension

The new road is a four-lane major arterial, divided roadway with raised median, a ten-foot wide shared use path, street lighting, a traffic signal at Ronald Reagan Boulevard and new water and wastewater lines. It also includes an extension of Arrow Point Drive. Construction began in late summer 2017 with a budget was $9.4 million.

The project was funded from proceeds of 2015 voter-approved bonds along with savings from prior bond projects, city officials explained. In addition, Williamson County contributed $1.3 million. Additional off-site improvements serve to accommodate access to and from the Spanish Oaks Estates subdivision.

Added Williamson County Commissioner Cynthia Long: “This is just one of the many projects of which the County has partnered with the City, but this project will be great as far as the County Transportation Plan is concerned because at some point this road will continue east, eventually connecting to I-35 and then Westinghouse on the other side of Williamson County.”

The contractors were Smith Construction Company, the engineers were LJA Engineering and the inspector was Robert Dial, Dial Development Services.