More traffic headaches ahead as Fort Worth plans 18-month road closure for Panther Island
Start your planning now, because in about two years it will be a lot harder to get to the north side from the West 7th District.
The city of Fort Worth is planning to close North University Drive between Rockwood Park Drive and Jacksboro Highway so the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can raise the road roughly 10 to 15 feet.
The construction is part of the larger $1.17 billion Central City Flood Control Project, which aims to replace a series of earthworks levees by connecting two sections of the Trinity River north of downtown.
The 1.5 mile channel will also create the man-made Panther Island with roughly 200-acres of land available for development.
Construction is expected to begin in 2026 and last roughly 18-months. The Fort Worth City Council will vote Tuesday on whether to authorize the closure.
Raising the road will enable this section of North University Drive to contain floodwater from the Trinity River rather than be overrun by it. The city will also open an alternative route to keep open access to businesses on the south side of the span.
Business access became an issue during the construction of the three Panther Island bridges between 2015 and 2021. Those bridges were supposed to open in 2017, but a combination design and funding issues pushed the project back.
The Army Corps needs to raise this section of North University Drive in order to operate the bypass channel north of downtown. The Corps is expected to begin building the channel in early 2025.
