Skillman bridge looking west.
After years of dodging orange cones and swerving around construction debris on a temporary bridge over LBJ Freeway, Dallas residents will officially be able to drive on the new Skillman Street Bridge this Saturday. The steel-arched bridge will be celebrated with a ribbon cutting ceremony Thursday morning.
“I am pleased to announce that the Skillman Bridge is officially opening on Saturday, September 20, following years of anticipation,” wrote District 10 Council Member Kathy Stewart in her newsletter today. “This project marks a significant milestone for our community, and I will provide a more detailed account of its development in this newsletter.”
The confusing “barbell” shaped intersection at Skillman and Audelia has long been one of the more dangerous in the city, and planning first began almost 20 years ago to reconfigure the juncture into two perpendicular crossings — one south of LBJ and one on the north side. Construction of the bridge is part of a larger plan to widen 635 East between I-30 and US 75, with managed toll lanes, added access roads and concrete sound walls. When funding was threatened by state legislators, neighborhood volunteers travelled to Austin, where they won the fight to get the project up and running.
“At this time, I would like to express my gratitude to Susan Morgan, chair of the Skillman Corridor TIF Board, whose leadership and dedication were crucial in bringing this project to fruition,” added Stweart. “We will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, September 18 at 8:00 a.m. to celebrate this achievement, and I invite you to join us.”
The temporary bridge adjacent to the massive white one will soon be closed and removed. You may watch progress on the bridge at Skillman and LBJ on TXDOT’s live watch action cam here.
Skillman Bridge looking east. Courtesy of Pegasus Link Constructors.
