Interstate 635 (Texas)

Interstate 635 (I-635) is a 37-mile-long (60 km) partial loop around Dallas, Texas, in the United States between I-20 in Balch Springs and State Highway 121 (SH 121) at the north entrance of the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in Grapevine. It intersects I-35E at exits 27B–C, but does not connect with I-35W. A small part of I-635 and I-20 is collectively designated as the Lyndon B. Johnson Freeway; known locally as the LBJ Freeway, or simply LBJ. The roadway is named after Lyndon B. Johnson, the former U.S. Senator from Texas, 37th Vice President, and the 36th President of the United States. Where I-635 ends at I-20, I-20 continues the LBJ Freeway designation heading west.

Interstate 635
Lyndon B. Johnson Freeway
I-635 highlighted in red
Route information
Auxiliary route of I-35
Maintained by TxDOT
Length	36.999 mi[1][2] (59.544 km)
Existed	October 1, 1959[1]–present
Major junctions
South end	I-20 in Balch Springs
	US 80 in Mesquite I-30 in Mesquite US 75 in Dallas I-35E in Dallas
West end	SH 121 / International Parkway near DFW Airport
Location
Counties	Dallas, Tarrant
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Future Highways in Texas Interstate U.S. State Toll Loops Spurs FM/RM Park Rec ← I-610 → I-820

Because the portion of I-20 between Spur 408 to I-635 retains the same names as I-635, the two highways can be considered 3/4 of the beltway around Dallas. Together with Spur 408, a portion of Loop 12 (Walton Walker Freeway), and a portion of Interstate 35E, the Stemmons Freeway, I-635 and I-20 complete the said beltway.

Route description

I-635 signage on the Dallas North Tollway frontage road. Galleria Dallas can be seen in the background.

I-635 begins at an intersection with I-20 in southeast Dallas, and travels northward through Balch Springs into Mesquite, where it intersects U.S. Highway 80 (US 80) and I-30. The route then turns to the northwest, continuing near the border between Dallas and Garland. Six miles (9.7 km) later is takes a general westward turn as it intersects US 75 at the High Five Interchange. The section from I-35E to US 75 (Central Expressway) is one of the busiest stretches of road in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, at virtually all hours of the day and night. The route continues west, intersecting the Dallas North Tollway and its original terminus, I-35E in Farmers Branch. The freeway then continues to the northwest, intersecting the President George Bush Turnpike in Irving before arriving at its final terminus at SH 121 at the north entrance to the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.

History

A 1955 photo of the Interstate Highway city plans

I-635 was originally designated by the Texas Department of Transportation in 1959 as a loop around the eastern side of Dallas, connecting with I-35E to the northwest and southwest sides of the city.

In January 1969, the first section to open to motorists was a 10-mile (16 km) section from US 75 (now SH 310) near Hutchins to Barnes Bridge in Mesquite. In February 1970, the highway from US 75 westward to I-35E northwest of Dallas opened to traffic. The I-635 designation was truncated on December 2, 1971 when I-20 was rerouted south of Dallas, taking over 13 miles (21 km) of I-635's former route.[1]

The connecting section of I-20 from the west was not completed until 1978. Initially, the section between I-35E and US 80 in southeast Dallas was concurrent with I-20. When the outlet for I-20 from southeast of Dallas to Terrell was completed, the I-635 designation was removed from I-35E to its intersection with I-20.

On April 1, 1968, Texas State Highway Loop 635 was designated from I-35E and I-635 to Spur 459 at the north entrance of DFW Airport. Spur 459 became part of a rerouted SH 121 on July 31, 1969. On July 31, 1974, Loop 635 was redesignated as part of I-635, and this section was opened in the 1980s.

Later changes

The High Five construction project (so called because it is five levels and rises almost 120 feet (40 m) above the lowest level), a rebuild of the interchange of I-635 and US 75, was opened for traffic in February 2006. This interchange carries over 500,000 vehicles per day and was built as the largest interchange in the state of Texas to handle this vehicle load.

Express project

A $2.7 billion project was started on May 16, 2011, to widen I-635 and dig subsequent high-occupancy toll (HOT) lane tunnels beneath the primary roadway from I-35E to the High Five Interchange, a length of 8 miles (13 km). Construction time was estimated in 2011 at five years [3] and was completed and opened for traffic on September 10, 2015. [4] The new freeway features tolled express lanes, known as TEXpress lanes, in between the main lanes or underneath them. The cost to drive on them fluctuates based on the current flow of traffic at the time. The project is among several billion dollar plus projects in the planning phase in and around downtown Dallas along with the rebuild of the I-35E & I-30 "Mixmaster". [5]

Exit list

County	Location	mi	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Dallas	Balch Springs	0.0	0.0	–	I-20 west – Fort Worth	Southern terminus; exit 480 on I-20
		0.1	0.16	1C	I-20 east – Shreveport	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
		0.4	0.64	1A	Seagoville Road
		1.5	2.4	1B	Elam Road
		2.6	4.2	2	Lake June Road
	Mesquite	3.6	5.8	3	West Cartwright Road / Bruton Road
		5.0	8.0	4	SH 352 (Military Parkway / Scyene Road)
		5.9	9.5	5	Gross Road / Galloway Avenue
		6.6	10.6	6	US 80 – Dallas, Terrell	Signed as exits 6A (west) and 6B (east)
		8.1	13.0	7A	Towne Centre Drive	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
		7.5	12.1	7B	Town East Boulevard	Signed as exit 7 northbound
		8.7	14.0	8	I-30 (US 67) – Dallas, Texarkana	Signed as exits 8A (west) and 8B (east); exits 56B-C on I-30
		9.7	15.6	9A	Oates Drive / Galloway Avenue
				–	Express Lanes	Southern terminus of Managed HOV Lane
	Mesquite–Garland line	10.8	17.4	9B	La Prada Drive	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; signage changes to east-west here
	Garland	11.4	18.3	11A	Centerville Road / Ferguson Road
		12.2	19.6	11B	Northwest Highway / Shiloh Road
		13.4	21.6	12	SH 78 (Garland Road)	Westbound access via exit 11B
	Garland–Dallas line	13.9	22.4	13	Jupiter Road / Kingsley Road / Walnut Hill Lane
	Dallas			–	Express Lanes	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance to Managed HOV Lane
		15.2	24.5	14	Plano Road / Church Road / New Church Road
		16.0	25.7	15	Miller Road / Royal Lane	Access to LBJ/Skillman Station
		16.6	26.7	16	Skillman Street / Audelia Road
				–	Express Lanes	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance to Managed HOV Lane
		17.6	28.3	17	Forest Lane / Abrams Road
		18.2	29.3	18A	Greenville Avenue / TI Boulevard	Signed as exit 18 westbound
				–	Express Lanes	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance to Managed HOV Lane
				–	I-635 Express west	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; Managed HOV Lane becomes Express Lanes
		19.5	31.4	18B	TI Boulevard	Westbound signed with Exit 18; full Express Lane interchange; to LBJ/Central Station
		18.8	30.3	19A	US 75 – Dallas, McKinney	High Five Interchange; exit 21 on US 75
				♦	US 75 north (HOV) to Spring Creek Parkway	Express Lanes; westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		19.6	31.5	19B	Coit Road
		20.2	32.5	20	Park Central Drive / Hillcrest Road
		21.5	34.6	21	SH 289 (Preston Road) / Montfort Drive
	Farmers Branch–Dallas line	22.8	36.7	22B	Dallas Parkway / Inwood Road / Montfort Drive / Welch Road	No direct eastbound exit (signed at exit 22D)
		23.2	37.3	22C-D	Dallas North Tollway	Signed as exits 22C (north) and 22D (south)
		24.1	38.8	23	Midway Road / Welch Road
		25.2	40.6	24	Marsh Lane
		25.8	41.5	25	Webb Chapel Road / Josey Lane / Denton Drive / Harry Hines Boulevard	Direct exit from Express lanes
	Dallas				I-35E Express – Dallas, Denton	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance from Express Lanes
		27.8	44.7	27B-C	I-35E (US 77) – Dallas, Denton	Signed as exits 27B (north) and 27C (south); exits 440B-C on I-35E
				–	I-635 Express east	Western terminus of express lanes
	Farmers Branch	29.0	46.7	28	Luna Road
	Irving	30.0	48.3	29	Pres. George Bush Turnpike north	Signed as exits 29 (north) and 30 (south) westbound, 29A (south) and 29B (north) eastbound
		30.7	49.4	31	MacArthur Boulevard	To Las Colinas Medical Center
		31.9	51.3	31B	Olympus Boulevard	Eastbound exit via exit 31
	Coppell–Irving line	32.8	52.8	33	Belt Line Road
		34.9	56.2	34	Freeport Parkway
	Coppell	35.8	57.6	35	Royal Lane
Tarrant	Grapevine	36.7	59.1	36A	SH 121 south / SH 114 – Fort Worth, DFW Airport, Dallas	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		36.9	59.4	36B	SH 121 north / FM 2499 north (Grapevine Mills Parkway) / Bass Pro Drive	Western terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Electronic toll collection       Incomplete access

See also

• List of facilities named after Lyndon Johnson

References

1. Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Interstate Highway No. 635". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
2. DeSimone, Tony (October 31, 2002). "Table 2: Auxiliary Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System Of Interstate and Defense Highways as of October 31, 2002". Route Log and Finder List. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved September 9, 2007.
3. Betz, Jonathan (May 16, 2011). "HOV lanes close on LBJ Freeway as 5-year, $2.7 billion makeover begins in North Dallas". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved May 16, 2011.
4. Wheeler, Jason. "After long road, LBJ Express project set to open". WFAA. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
5. NTTA. "Trinity Parkway". Retrieved 20 September 2015.

External links

• Interstate Guide: I-635 (Texas)
• I-635 info page -- from dfwfreeways.info
• Kurumi: 3-digit Interstates from I-35