Drivers will soon spend less time waiting at Allen stoplights, thanks to the addition of new right turn lanes. On April 24, city council members approved a $1 million construction contract to add dedicated turn lanes at two Allen intersections.
Drivers heading north on Greenville will benefit from a new right turn lane at Exchange Parkway. Traffic counts from 2014 found more than 180 vehicles per hour made that turn during peak times.
Two new turn lanes will be added on McDermott Drive at US 75. One will allow drivers traveling west on McDermott to turn north to US 75. The other will add a second turn lane for drivers traveling east on McDermott to turn south on US 75. During traffic counts conducted in 2014, more than 800 vehicles merged onto US 75 every hour during peak times, with 75% of the traffic heading south.
Those traffic counts prompted Allen to request grant funding from Collin County in 2014. The county agreed to contribute $450,000 to the project, including $225,000 toward construction costs. After several years completing the design and land acquisition, construction is slated to begin in May. All lanes are expected to be open by the end of 2018.