Interstate 635 (Texas)

Interstate 635
Lyndon B. Johnson Freeway
Route information
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
	I-35E in Dallas US 75 in Dallas I-30 in Mesquite US 80 in Mesquite
West end:	SH 121 / International Parkway near DFW Airport
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Highways in Texas Interstate US State Toll Loops Spurs Park Rec FM ← I-610 I-820 →

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. It is known locally as the Lyndon B. Johnson Freeway, or LBJ, named after Lyndon B. Johnson, the former U.S. Senator from Texas, 37th Vice President, and the 36th President of the United States.

Because the portion of I-20 between Spur 408 to I-635 retains the same names as 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, 635 and 20 complete the 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 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 in 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.

An additional westward expansion (to the north entrance of DFW Airport) was designated in 1974 and 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 17 miles (27 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" and the new Trinity Parkway). ^[5]

Exit list

County	Location	mi	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Dallas	Balch Springs	0.0	0.0		I-20 west – Fort Worth	I-20 exit 480
		0.1	0.2	1C	I-20 east – Shreveport	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
		0.4	0.6	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
		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); I-30 exits 56B-C
		9.7	15.6	9A	Oates Drive / Galloway Avenue
					Managed HOV Lane	Northbound exit and southbound entrance
	Mesquite Garland	10.8	17.4	9B	La Prada Drive	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	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)	No direct westbound exit (signed at exit 11B)
	Garland Dallas	13.9	22.4	13	Jupiter Road / Kingsley Road / Walnut Hill Lane
	Dallas				Managed HOV Lane	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		15.2	24.5	14	Plano Road / 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
					Managed HOV Lane	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		17.6	28.3	17	Forest Lane / Abrams Road
		18.2	29.3	18A	Greenville Avenue	Signed as exit 18 westbound
					Managed HOV Lane	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
					I-635 Express west to SH 289 (Preston Road) / Dallas North Tollway	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		19.5	31.4	18B	TI Boulevard	No direct westbound exit (signed at exit 18), access to LBJ/Central Station
		18.8	30.3	19A	US 75 – Dallas, McKinney	High Five Interchange; US 75 exit 21
		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	22.8	36.7	22B	Dallas Parkway / Inwood Road / Montfort Drive	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	No direct westbound exit (signed at exit 23)
		25.8	41.5	25	Webb Chapel Road / Josey Lane / Denton Drive / Harry Hines Boulevard
	Dallas				I-35E Express – Dallas, Denton	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		27.8	44.7	27B-C	I-35E (US 77) – Dallas, Denton	Signed as exits 27B (north) and 27C (south); I-35E exits 440B-C
	Farmers Branch	29.0	46.7	28	Luna Road
	Irving	30.0	48.3	29	Pres. George Bush Tpk. north	Signed as exits 29 (north) and 30 (south) westbound and exits 29A (south) and 29B (north) eastbound
		30.7	49.4	31	MacArthur Boulevard	Access to Las Colinas Medical Center
		31.9	51.3	31B	Olympus Boulevard	No direct eastbound exit (signed at exit 31)
	Coppell / Irving	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	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       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

Route map: Bing / Google

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