Loop 337 Update

The New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung reports that about 200 people turned out to see the latest plans for the 6.7-mile, $45 million project to widen Loop 337 into a four-lane divided highway.

The news article said that according to TxDOT, traffic loads on Loop 337 will increase by 40-50 percent over the next 20 years, and the project is designed to meet the needs created by population growth as well as the Veramendi project, which is to be built along the loop.

In 2014, 17,900 vehicles per day used the loop just north of River Road, while 33,500 are projected to do so in 2039. At San Antonio Street near the south terminus of the loop, that figure is expected to grow from 14,232 in 2014 to 43,000 in 2039.

The article says that New Braunfels Mayor Barron Casteel, who attended the meeting, likes what he saw. “It’s important because of the growth in this town,” he said. “The growth will occur with or without the new roadway, and this will only make it safer. We know it’s bad now. If we don’t do something in certain areas, we’ll have a tragedy.”

Read the full Herald-Zeitung article.