Kyle breaks ground on series of transportation projects

KYLE, Texas (KXAN) — The city of Kyle on Tuesday broke ground on a project that will extend and connect Marketplace Avenue. The 0.6-mile project is the first of 13 road segments the city will work on to improve road conditions as Kyle and its traffic continue to grow.

Currently, Marketplace Avenue is separated by an open field. This project will connect the two segments of Marketplace, which will provide a faster way to travel between the city’s public safety center and downtown. The new Marketplace Avenue will run right by the future site of the St. David’s HealthCare hospital .

Three major road projects will break ground next year, with seven more scheduled to break ground in 2026, and an additional two planned to begin in 2027. All of the projects are part of the 2022 bond voters approved to help decrease congestion on roads as traffic increases .

Kyle Mayor Travis Mitchell said the population has doubled from 30,000 to more than 60,000 over the past several years. “That makes a lot of traffic on these major thoroughfares. This is an important project to get started,” Mitchell said about the Marketplace Avenue project.

The entire bond will add, widen, and reconstruct 10.3 miles of road. The goal is to not only decrease the amount of traffic congestion, but also focus on innovative intersections that improve the safety for pedestrians.

Part of the Marketplace Avenue project will extend the city’s Vybe trail, a 12-foot wide multi-modal path. The trail will go underneath FM 1626, allowing pedestrians to get across the 8-lane roadway without any risk. The mayor said people will soon be able to walk from downtown to the public safety center.

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