Lots of Interest in Meeting on Hwy. 77/Bluff’s Future

A big crowd showed up for the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) open house on the US 77 Feasibility Study at the VFW Hall in La Grange last Thursday, June 29.

TxDOT hosted the open house to gather public input over possible changes to US 77 in the La Grange area aimed at improving traffic safety, especially in regard to 18-wheeler crashes.

The open house was supposed to begin at 4:30 p.m. Tx-DOT spokesperson Lucea’n Kuykendall said people started showing up soon after she arrived at 3 p.m. According to data presented at the event, there have been 180 crashes in the La Grange area between FM 2436 (the Hostyn cutoff) and SH 71 Bypass in La Grange from 2018 to 2022. Of those, 105 crashes involved commercial motor vehicles. Eleven of 180 crashes involved fatalities and 22 involved suspected serious injuries.

The vast majority of those crashes, 153, occurred between Loehr Rd. south of La Grange and SH 71. Crashes on the curvy Bluff road south of La Grange attract a lot of attention due to the traffic congestion that invariably follows each one. But according to TxDOT’s data, most of the wrecks happen around the intersection of US 77 and SH 71 Business (Travis St.) in La Grange.

At the open house, TxDOT officials set up several large maps of the study area. They asked participants to identify landmarks such as old cemeteries. Participants could also leave comments and suggestions on ways to improve traffic. Many of the comments expressed support for a mandatory truck route through Hostyn to avoid the Bluff. However, some Hostyn residents opposed that idea. Others left notes on the map with remarks such as “Family property since the 1800s! Do not come through please!” and “Do not straighten the Bluff Rd., it’s a sightseeing treasure for La Grange.”

Local historian Gary E. Mc-Kee left a note informing Tx-DOT about Native American cultural resources that he knows about in the Hostyn area. He said if TxDOT plans construction through Hostyn, the agency should conduct research to avoid damaging any artifacts in the area.

So far, TxDOT has not publicly announced any options they are considering. Tx-DOT District Engineer Martin Horst said the State may ultimately decide to do nothing. If TxDOT decides to move forward with changes to the highway, construction would likely be a decade away or more. Horst said the State has not allocated any funding toward construction.

TxDOT plans to hold another open house later this year at which they may announce a preferred concept for improvements to the highway. TxDOT will continue to accept comments from the public through July 14. Comments can be emailed to arivas@ cdandp.com or mailed to US 77 La Grange Feasibility Study, ℅ CD&P, PO Box 5459, Austin, TX 78763. The public can also review the maps and other documents online at https://www.txdot. gov/projects/hearings-meetings/ yoakum/us77-la-grangefeasibility- study.html.