Ferrovial's Webber is entering the final year of construction on the Texas Department of Transportation's (TxDOT) $365 million Interstate 10 widening project in Colorado County, a major effort designed to improve one of the state's busiest transportation corridors.
Construction began in March 2024 on the 12-mi. stretch of I-10 from U.S. 90 (Alleyton Road) to Farm-to-Market 2761, with completion scheduled for July 2027.
The project is widening the interstate from two to three 12-ft. concrete lanes in each direction, adding 12-ft. inside and outside shoulders, reconstructing the existing roadway, replacing 18 bridges, rebuilding frontage roads and improving drainage, communications and safety infrastructure.
Approximately 70,000 vehicles travel the corridor daily.
"This project is needed to address the significant growth and development occurring in the area and the increasing traffic demand along a corridor that serves as a critical connection between Houston, Austin and San Antonio — three of the four largest cities in Texas," Guillermo Fernandez, Webber's project manager, told Construction Equipment Guide.
He added that the westbound outside shoulder is being designed to serve as a hurricane evacuation lane.
"It will be part of a safe and reliable hurricane evacuation route for the region," TxDOT spokesman Lucea'n Kuykendall told Construction Equipment Guide.
Rebuilding Aging Infrastructure
The project, located in TxDOT's Yoakum District and funded through the state's highway program, replaces infrastructure dating to the original construction of I-10 in 1938.
Work includes rebuilding both main lanes and frontage roads, converting the frontage roads from two-way to one-way operation, replacing a grassy cable-barrier median with a concrete barrier and reconstructing the Colorado River bridge and 17 additional bridges.
"The existing frontage roads were in poorer condition than the main lanes," Fernandez said. "However, both had reached a point where replacement was necessary to improve safety, address increasing traffic demand and reduce congestion along the corridor."
TxDOT and Consor designed the project.
The concrete pavement is expected to last approximately 50 years, while the bridges have an anticipated 80-year service life. Kuykendall noted that only minor maintenance should be required after about a decade.
Innovative Construction Methods
Fernandez said the project incorporates several innovations, including precast bridge overhangs in place of conventional cast-in-place construction and a pilot use of recycled fine aggregates in reinforced concrete pavement developed in partnership with TxDOT and the University of Texas.
Most major work already has been completed, including subgrade stabilization, drainage installation, bridge construction and much of the final pavement.
Over the remaining year, crews will finish paving the main lanes and frontage roads, install permanent striping and signage, paint structures and complete erosion control and landscaping.
Soil Conditions Present Challenges
One of the project's greatest challenges has been the area's difficult soil conditions.
"Subgrade conditions have been a major challenge," Fernandez said. "These challenges are being addressed through detailed phasing, traffic control planning and extensive subgrade stabilization efforts to support the long-term performance of the roadway."
Drainage also has required continual attention across the corridor to maintain stable work areas.
The project uses conventional Grade 60 reinforcing steel rather than epoxy-coated rebar because of local environmental conditions considered during design.
Fernandez estimated that reconstructing a typical 1- to 2-mi. roadway section — from demolition through paving readiness — requires approximately three to four months.
High-early-strength concrete is being used where traffic must return to newly completed pavement the following day, minimizing disruptions for motorists.
Construction has progressed through nine traffic phases. Seven follow a standard sequence of shifting traffic, removing the existing median, stabilizing the subgrade and constructing new lanes. In two phases involving new turnarounds, traffic was temporarily shifted onto completed frontage roads while crews rebuilt the main lanes.
Extensive Bridge Program
Replacing all 18 bridges has been one of the project's largest undertakings.
The new structures include six main-lane bridges carrying six traffic lanes, eight frontage-road bridges and four underpasses. Bridge lengths range from approximately 80 ft. to 540 ft.
"Two separate drilling crews worked on site at the same time, which helped accelerate bridge foundation operations, and all bridge work was completed in 25 months," Fernandez said.
The bridges required approximately 33,024 linear ft. of drilled shafts measuring up to 78 in. in diameter and nearly 100 ft. deep.
Construction begins by preparing a stable drilling platform after demolition. Because sandy soils dominate the region, bentonite slurry is used to prevent shaft walls from collapsing during drilling. After drilling, reinforcing cages are installed and concrete is placed through tremie pipes from the bottom upward to ensure structural integrity.
Once foundations cure, crews construct columns and caps before erecting precast bridge beams measuring up to 150 ft. long. Precast deck panels are then installed between beams, followed by reinforcing steel, expansion joints and deck concrete.
Bridge decks cure for 10 days before crews remove temporary formwork and install concrete traffic barriers using slipform paving equipment.
Roadway Reconstruction
The entire roadway structure is being rebuilt.
The pavement section consists of cement-treated subbase, road base and either asphalt or reinforced concrete pavement, depending on location.
Earthwork crews remove existing pavement, excavate unsuitable materials and transport surplus soil to fill areas elsewhere on the project. GPS-guided bulldozers and motor graders eliminate the need for traditional staking over long distances and improve grading accuracy.
After grading, crews stabilize the subgrade by mixing cement and water into the soil before reshaping the finished surface.
Flexible pavement is constructed using a base course followed by two asphalt surface courses. Concrete pavement begins with a 1-in. asphalt bond breaker that allows the concrete slab to expand and contract without cracking.
After reinforcing steel is placed, concrete is paved, finished and cured. Relief joints are saw-cut into the slab to control cracking caused by curing and temperature changes.
Equipment and Workforce
Road construction relies on a large fleet that includes excavators, bulldozers, backhoes, reclaimers, compactors, motor graders, asphalt pavers and GOMACO concrete paving equipment.
Bridge construction used Tadano rough-terrain cranes, Link-Belt crawler cranes, Liebherr cranes, concrete pump trucks, telehandlers and aerial lifts.
Webber demolished four bridges during overnight closures lasting between 12 and 15 hours.
Demolition crews first protected the roadway below with a 12-in. sand cushion before using excavators equipped with hydraulic hammers to remove the bridge decks.
During peak activity, approximately 180-200 Webber employees and subcontractors work on the project.
Major subcontractors include Durwood Greene Construction for asphalt paving, AH Beck for drilled foundations and Allstate Signal for electrical, communications and overhead signing.
Recycling Materials
Large quantities of existing materials are being recycled.
Project crews have generated approximately 150,000 cu. yds. of demolished concrete, 200,000 cu. yds. of asphalt millings, 160,000 cu. yds. of flexible base milling and 575,000 cu. yds. of excavated material.
Much of the reclaimed asphalt and flexible base is being incorporated into new cement-treated road base in accordance with TxDOT specifications.
New materials include approximately 955,000 cu. yds. of embankment, 148,000 cu. yds. of flexible road base, 400,000 cu. yds. of concrete and 450,000 tons of asphalt.
Keeping Equipment Running
Maintaining such a large fleet has required constant attention.
"The main issues are hydraulic lines busting, tires leaking or going flat and blade cutting edges needing periodic replacement," Fernandez said. "Most repairs can be taken care of within the same day, assuming no specific parts need to be shipped."
With major bridge work complete and paving well underway, the project has entered its final construction phase. Over the next year, crews will focus on completing pavement, traffic control devices, landscaping and finishing work before opening the fully reconstructed six-lane corridor in July 2027.
The completed project is expected to improve traffic flow, enhance safety and provide a more resilient transportation link connecting Houston, Austin and San Antonio while serving as a key hurricane evacuation route for southeast Texas.
