Texas State Highway 121

State Highway 121 marker

State Highway 121
Route information
Maintained by TxDOT
Length: 85.563 mi[1] (137.700 km)
Existed: by 1939 – present
Major junctions
Southwest end: I-35W / US 287 / US 377 / Spur 347 in Fort Worth
 

I-820 from Richland Hills to North Richland Hills
I-635 in Grapevine
I-35E / US 77 in Lewisville
Dallas North Tollway in Plano
US 75 from McKinney to Melissa
US 69 in Trenton

US 82 in Bonham
Northeast end: SH 78 in Bonham
Highway system
SH 120SH 122

State Highway 121 is a state highway angling from southwest to northeast through north central Texas. It runs from downtown Fort Worth, Texas at the junction of Interstate 35W to Bonham, Texas, just north of a junction with U.S. Highway 82.

Between Fort Worth and Euless, SH 121 is known as Airport Freeway (east of Euless, this name applies to SH 183). From Grapevine and Coppell, it is known as International Parkway. East of Coppell, the highway acts as the frontage road of the Sam Rayburn Tollway, a tolled freeway that runs northeast to McKinney. From McKinney to Melissa, the state highway is concurrent with US 75 and the North Central Expressway. Northeast of Melissa, SH 121 is a smaller roadway referred to in some places as the Sam Rayburn Highway.

Route description

SH 121 Business west from IH-35E towards Grapevine

Sections between downtown Fort Worth and Grapevine are freeway, including a small segment near Hurst that coincides with Interstate 820. At Bedford, Texas it has an interchange with SH 183, the Irving freeway that leads toward Dallas; it has an interchange with SH 360, which leads toward Arlington, just to the west of the north entrance to the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, to which State Highway 121 gives access. At Grapevine it has interchanges with SH 114 and Interstate 635 before becoming a limited-access tollway that passes between Lewisville and Frisco.

It is very heavily traveled south and west of McKinney and has become an urban highway due to the rapid growth of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Service roads extending southwest to northeast along the corridor from Lewisville to McKinney are free of charge; however the main lanes within the right-of-way are tolled as part of the Sam Rayburn Tollway operated by the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA). The highway's northeastern half is primarily two lanes wide and carries significantly less traffic.

It meets Interstate 35E at Lewisville, SH 289 near Frisco, US 75 and US 380 in McKinney, US 69 at Trenton, and SH 78 just north of Bonham.

Construction began in 2009 on the extension of 121 south from Fort Worth to Cleburne, as a toll road called Southwest Parkway in Tarrant County and Chisholm Trail Parkway in Johnson County. This section will be operated by the NTTA and the entire project, from IH 30 to U.S. 67 is expected to open to traffic in the fourth quarter of 2013.[2]

In March, 2009, work was completed on the eventual southbound lanes on a short stretch of 121 northeast of DFW Airport, which currently shares southbound and northbound traffic. This work upgraded two signalized at-grade intersections to a freeway, with overpasses at both intersections, improving traffic in that area.[3] The northbound freeway lanes are currently under construction, which also include new, separate exits and entrances for Freeport Parkway and Grapevine Mills Boulevard/Sandy Lake Road.

Interchange between SH 121 and SH 121 Business Route

Sam Rayburn Tollway

Main article: Sam Rayburn Tollway

From McKinney to Coppell, State Highway 121 acts as a frontage road to Sam Rayburn Tollway, contrary to the popular misconception that the Sam Rayburn Tollway was the new SH 121.

Controversy

In early 2007, the Spanish firm Cintra agreed to a $2.8 billion, 50-year deal where they would lease the highway from TxDOT, finish building and maintain it, and collect the tolls. [4] However, critics of the deal questioned both its length—the contract allowed Cintra to collect tolls for 50 years—and the fact that the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) was prevented from bidding on the contract. In addition, general opposition to the toll plan organized, pointing out that the segment through Denton County had already been paid for by taxpayer money.[5]

To answer some of these complaints, Texas legislators pressed the Texas Department of Transportation to allow the NTTA to bid.[6] The Authority announced their proposed bid in early May 2007, which would provide approximately $3.3 billion in road funding, but is based on traffic counts that differ from those used by Cintra.[7]

On June 28, 2007, the Texas Transportation Commission announced it would pursue the proposal from the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA).[8]

Route history

SH 121 was originally numbered in 1928 as a direct routing between Fort Worth and McKinney. By 1933, the route had been completed from Ft. Worth northeast through Grapevine to its intersection with U.S. Route 77 in far southern Denton County. In 1943, the ambitious plan to extend SH 121 northeast to Bonham was approved by TXDOT, a part of which absorbed Farm to Market Road 82 between Bonham and Randolph. But it wasn't until 1954 that the next section of this highway was completed between U.S. 77 at Lewisville and U.S. Route 75 near McKinney. The final section between McKinney and Trenton was not completed until 1964, including an extension around the western side of Bonham. In 1965, the section from downtown Fort Worth to Interstate 820 was transferred to newly completed freeway sections.

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[9]kmDestinationsNotes
TarrantFort Worth0.00.0 I-35W / US 287 / US 377 south Waco, Denton
Spur 347 west (Belknap Street) Downtown Fort Worth
I-35W exit 52B, access to Fort Worth Intermodal Transportation Center
0.81.29Sylvania Avenue
1.21.9Riverside Drive
2.13.4Beach Street
2.74.3Maxine StreetNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
Haltom City3.15.0Haltom Road
4.26.8Carson Street
4.97.9Minnis Drive
Richland Hills6.410.3 Handley-Ederville RoadAccess to Richland Hills Station
Hurst7.311.7 I-820 southsouth end of I-820 overlap; SH 121 south follows exit 24B
SH 10 east / SH 183 west Richland Hillssouth end of SH 183 overlap; I-820 exit 24A
8.413.5 Pipeline Road / Glenview DriveI-820 exit 23, access to North Hills Hospital

SH 121 Express north / SH 183 Express east to FM 157
northbound exit and southbound entrance; I-820 exit 23A
8.513.7 SH 26 / FM 1938 north (Davis Boulevard) / Bedford-Euless Road Colleyville, TCC Northeast CampusI-820 exit 22B
8.914.3 I-820 westnorth end of I-820 overlap; SH 121 north follows exit 22A
10.116.3 FM 3029 north (Precinct Line Road) / Hurstview Drive
Hurst
Bedford
11.518.5Norwood Drive / Brown Trail
Bedford12.520.1Bedford Road / Forest Ridge Drive
13.020.9 Central Drive / Forest Ridge DriveAccess to Texas Health HEB
13.621.9 SH 183 east DFW Airport South Entry, Irvingnorth end of SH 183 overlap; no direct southbound exit (signed at Murphy Drive)
14.022.5Westpark Way / Murphy Drive
15.024.1Harwood Road

SH 121 Express south / SH 183 Express west to I-820
southbound exit and northbound entrance
Bedford
Euless
16.726.9 FM 157 south / Cheek-Sparger Road
Euless
Grapevine
17.227.7Glade Road
Grapevine18.129.1Hall-Johnson Road
18.730.1 To SH 360 / Stone Myers ParkwayNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
19.331.1 SH 360 south ArlingtonSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
20.833.5 SH 114 west (SH 26 south) to FM 1709 / William D. Tate Avenue Bridgeportsouth end of SH 114 overlap
21.935.2
SH 26 north / Bus. SH 114 west (Texan Trail) / Main Street Grapevine Historic District
no northbound entrance
22.436.0 SH 114 east DallasNorth end of SH 114 overlap
22.936.9DFW Airport (International Parkway)
24.339.1 I-635 eastI-635 exit 36
24.739.8Bass Pro Drive / Bethel Road / Grapevine Mills Trail
25.340.7 FM 2499 north (Grapevine Mills Parkway) Flower Moundnorthbound exit and southbound entrance
DallasCoppell / Grapevine26.242.2Grapevine Mills Boulevard / Sandy Lake Road / Freeport Parkway
DentonLewisville27.644.4
Bus. SH 121 north Lewisville
DallasCoppell
Lewisville
28.846.3 Sam Rayburn Tollway north / Denton Tap Road McKinneynorth end of freeway
DentonLewisville30.048.3 Sam Rayburn Tollway / MacArthur Boulevard
31.150.1 Sam Rayburn Tollway south / I-35E (US 77) Denton, Dallas, D/FW Airport, Fort Worthsouth end of Sam Rayburn Tollway overlap; south end of freeway; I-35E exits 447A-447B-448A
Carrollton32.352.0Marchant Boulevard / Huffines Boulevard
33.253.4 Sam Rayburn Tollway north / Hebron Parkwaynorth end of Sam Rayburn Tollway overlap; north end of freeway
34.355.2 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Carrollton Parkway
Lewisville35.156.5 Sam Rayburn Tollway south / FM 544
35.757.5
Sam Rayburn Tollway / Bus. SH 121 south / FM 2281 south Lewisville
36.658.9 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Standridge Drive / Castle Hills Drive
36.959.4 Sam Rayburn Tollway / FM 423 north (Main Street) / Josey Lane Little Elm
The Colony38.361.6 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Paige Road / Plano Parkway
Sam Rayburn Tollway southsouthbound exit and northbound entrance
39.964.2 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Spring Creek Parkway
CollinPlano / Frisco40.765.5 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Legacy Drive
41.767.1 To Dallas North Tollway / Dallas Parkway
Sam Rayburn Tollway / Parkwood Boulevard
42.868.9 Sam Rayburn Tollway north / Dallas North Tollway / SH 289 (Preston Road)
Sam Rayburn Tollway / Ohio Driveinterchange
43.970.7 Sam Rayburn Tollway north / Hillcrest Road / Rasor Boulevard
45.272.7 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Coit Road
46.374.5 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Independence Parkway
Plano / Frisco
Allen / McKinney
47.276.0 Sam Rayburn Tollway south / FM 2478 north (Custer Road)
Allen / McKinney48.177.4 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Exchange Parkway
49.078.9 Sam Rayburn Tollway north / Alma Drive
50.080.5 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Stacy Road
50.881.8 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Watters Road / Lake Forest Drive
51.883.4 Sam Rayburn Tollway / Chelsea Boulevard / Hardin Boulevard
52.985.1 US 75 south to SH 5 (via Spur 399 east) Dallassouth end of US 75 overlap; SH 121 south follows exit 39
see US 75
Melissa61.298.5 US 75 north Shermannorth end of US 75 overlap; SH 121 north follows exit 45
SH 5 southsouth end of SH 5 overlap
62.2100.1 SH 5 north Melissa, AnnaInterchange; north end of SH 5 overlap
63.7102.5 FM 545 (East Melissa Road) Melissa, Blue Ridge
64.9104.4 FM 2933 south New Hope
AnnaOuter Loop Road
FM 455 west Annasouth end of FM 455 overlap
FM 455 east to FM 2862north end of FM 455 overlap
71.6115.2 FM 2862 Westminster
Desert75.4121.3 SH 160 Whitewright, Blue Ridge
FanninTrenton FM 814 westsouth end of FM 814 overlap
FM 814 east Trentonnorth end of FM 814 overlap
80.7129.9
US 69 / Bus. US 69 Whitewright, Leonard
Interchange
86.0138.4
Bus. SH 121 north
86.5139.2 SH 11 Sherman, CommerceInterchange
87.7141.1
Bus. SH 121 south Randolph
90.5145.6 FM 1629 east – Edhube
93.0149.7 Spur 311 north to SH 56 west Sherman, Sam Rayburn House
Bonham93.7150.8 SH 56 west ShermanSouth end of SH 56 overlap
94.2151.6 SH 56 east Bonham, Sam Rayburn LibraryNorth end of SH 56 overlap
96.1154.7 US 82 Sherman, ParisUS 82 exit 670
96.9155.9 FM 898 west Ector
98.3158.2 SH 78 Durant, Bonham
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

  1. Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "State Highway No. 121". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved 2010-06-15.
  2. http://www.ntta.org/NR/rdonlyres/3FFA8F0C-1525-445F-A169-8B47A341B396/0/NTTA_SWPCT_Brief.pdf", Southwest Parkway/Chisholm Trail Project Status Report March 2009 from the NTTA.
  3. http://www.wfaa.com/video/?z=y&nvid=344241 "Overpasses give non-stop route between Frisco and D/FW", WFAA-TV report, March 20, 2009.
  4. Google (September 30, 2013). "SH 121" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved September 30, 2013.

External links

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