The 7-mile stretch of highway connecting Austin to Dripping Springs has been undergoing a $677 million facelift since 2021, turning the four-lane, undivided roadway into a six-lane divided highway with new frontage roads and 14 miles of shared-use paths.
The overview
This project is the Oak Hill Parkway project, helmed by the Texas Department of Transportation.
The following improvements to the roadway are underway:
- New intersections at Convict Hill Road, RM 1826, Scenic Brook Drive and Circle Drive
- An overpass over William Cannon Drive and new flyovers between Hwy. 290 and SH 71
- U-turns at intersections along US 290 and SH 71
- The overpass along Hwy. 71 will extend past Scenic Brook Drive where the road will transition to three northbound lanes and two southbound lanes
- Shared-use paths and sidewalks for bicycles and pedestrians
The project is over halfway to completion, according to TxDOT officials. Contractors are expected to complete all “punch list items” by September with a substantial completion date set for mid-2026, TxDOT project manager Christiana Astarita said.
Over the fall, TxDOT will perform quality checks and final tasks will be completed, such as any final layers of paving, lane striping and traffic signal installation.
Astarita noted that crews have removed more than 2 million cubic yards of dirt—enough to fill over 600 Olympic-sized swimming pools—to lower the roadway beneath the planned bypass, completing about 80% of the total excavation and marking a major milestone in the overall construction.
Multiple milling machines are operating nonstop to complete the excavation of the final section surrounding the Convict Hill Road intersection, she said.
As construction progresses, travelers may notice frequent changes to traffic patterns.
Most recently, crews opened access to a new bridge at the juncture of RM 1826 and Hwy. 290. The first phase of the bridge opened in early March, enhancing access to the highway and cross traffic along the ranch-to-market road. A single lane in each direction is open to vehicular traffic, while construction continues on the opposite side of the bridge.
How we got here
The need to reconstruct Oak Hill Parkway is due to several reasons, including its inability to accommodate traffic volumes in the area and aging infrastructure, Astarita said.
This section of the highway is currently listed among the top 100 most congested roadways in the state by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute.
Since 1995, the road’s capacity has been exacerbated by population growth, according to Astarita. By 2040, traffic demand is expected to more than double along “the Y” intersection.
Additionally, roughly one crash occurs every other day along the 7-mile length of highway. There were 1,245 crashes reported between 2016-2022, with 19 being fatal and 44 resulting in injuries.
The crash rate along the corridor is 86% higher than the statewide average for similar rural roadways, according to TxDOT, which describes it as an “unreliable route” for public transit and emergency vehicles.
What they're saying
Staff at nearby businesses including Sweet Treats Bakery and Graze Craze told Community Impact they have found the ongoing construction disruptive, making their businesses harder to locate.
Graze Craze employee Reti Abimbola said the most common complaint she hears from customers is about the traffic. She said shifting road configurations make it difficult for customers and delivery drivers to navigate the entrance of Oak Hill Centre, where the store is located. Oak Hill Centre is situated adjacent to the intersection of William Cannon Drive and Hwy. 290, where crews are erecting bridge piers to support the next segment of elevated roadway.
However, stops like Oak Hill Social, located further west near more completed sections of the road project, have noticed that access to their business has increased. A new bridge now provides a direct crossing over the highway just in front of the business.
“There are more people now... I’ve been told a lot about the bridge right there. It wasn't there before and people that live around here say it’s convenient," Oak Hill Social staff member Frankie Trujillo said.
Moving forward
The construction sequence that TxDOT has used for the Oak Hill Parkway project follows an “outside-in” approach. This prioritizes construction of the new frontage roads—on the outside—prior to the reconstruction of the main lanes, according to TxDOT documents.
The construction team has finished new Hwy. 290 frontage roads, and traffic has been shifted onto the new roads while bridge construction at the overpass locations occurs.
Traffic on Hwy. 290 will not be impeded during final overpass construction near the Y; however, drivers that need to cross Hwy. 290 may be detoured to temporary turnarounds or need to use the next available intersection while construction takes place.
TxDOT officials said the next segment to see construction will be surrounding the Convict Hill Road and Hwy. 290 intersection, with road closures and detours expected to begin mid-June.
As detours occur, TxDOT also said they are in constant communication with local emergency services, providing updates and maps of the current configuration.
