FROM THE BURLESON COUNTY TRIBUNE: "TxDOT will continue working this year on its mitigation plan for the wetlands impacted by the final leg of the F.M. 60 widening project. And utility relocation work by utility companies impacted has already begun, according to Bob Colwell of TxDOT. TxDOT still plans to seek bids for the widening construction in early 2023 and award a contract about two months after letting bids, Colwell said. Colwell said construction would begin about four months after the project is awarded and would conclude about 30-36 months after construction starts. The Texas Transportation Commission approved $52 million in construction funding in August of 2019 for the final leg of the project. The widening is the culmination of a long-time dream for Burleson County leaders who have long sought a four-lane highway from F.M. 50 to State Highway 36 South to improve safety and mobility. The final leg of the expansion will run from .1 of a mile west of F.M. 2039 to State Highway 36 at Lyons. The road will be expanded from the existing two-lane roadway to a four-lane divided highway with a grass median and crossovers similar to adjacent sections of F.M. 60 already completed. This will be the fourth and final section to be upgraded from two to four lanes running from F.M. 50 to State Highway 36. Burleson County has contributed 10 percent of the right of way acquisition costs and utility relocation, and that agreement remains in effect for the remainder of the project. The most recent completed portion was from half a mile east of Old River to one mile west of F.M. 2039. Colwell said previously that completion for that part of the project was $10.8 million with Big Creek Construction of Hewitt as the contractor. The first phase was from the Brazos County line to F.M. 50, followed by another section from F.M. 50 to Old River. TxDOT has widened the road for safety purposes, since many accidents, including fatalities, have occurred along the road through-out the years."