By Megan Wehring
KYLE – A roundabout is expected to help traffic flow at the new Casetta Ranch subdivision.
Community concerns about city construction work were addressed at the Kyle City Council meeting on Dec. 15 when the city manager presented an update on the roundabout construction at Bunton Lane and Goforth Road.
“This is a project that occurred because of the development from Casetta Ranch,” city manager Scott Sellers told the city council. “But the city was also requesting better traffic flow especially in light of the additional traffic volume that we will be experiencing in that area.”
The construction is intended to provide a solution to the existing limited intersection, which is expected to have more vehicles traveling in and out with the new Casetta Ranch Subdivision. The project is approximately 70% complete with the east and west movement expected to be open by the end of year.
“Several transportation projects in the area were pushing traffic onto Bebee Road and were really adding more volume of cars to the Bebee/Dacy intersection,” Sellers said. “We were able to identify and acquire a portable traffic or construction signal. We were able to go out to monitor that multiple times.”
Beginning on Dec. 11, Kyle Police officers are stationed to assist with traffic control on Goforth Road, Bebee Road and Dacy Lane. Officers will be present Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Kyle Police presence is planned through Dec. 18, when school will be released for the holiday break but traffic will still be monitored.
Residents who live in the area will be mostly affected by the construction, council member Michael Tobias said, but they should be aware that the city is working on a solution.
“I want to thank all of the residents and citizens in that area, especially the neighborhood of Kensington Trails, and all of the other neighborhoods off Goforth,” Tobias said. “I understand your frustration about this and the inconvenience that it is applying to each and every single one of you. Just know that we are doing our best to resolve this issue.”
Mayor Travis Mitchell said there needs to be more frequent communication between city staff and the city council when it comes to capital improvement (CIP) and road projects.
“There’s a dissonance between what we think is about to happen as a council, what we are projecting to the community is about to happen and what actually happens when these projects get detoured and rerouted in a way that nobody is expecting,” Mitchell said.
