The busy intersection at Loop 1604 and Interstate 10 on the Northwest Side will become the roads to nowhere starting Friday evening and lasting through the weekend.
Several lanes of both highways will be closed from 9 p.m. Friday until 5 a.m. Monday as crews work to set steel beams at the interchange.
The work is part of the Loop 1604 North Expansion project by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) that began in 2021 to widen and improve the outer highway loop and is expected to continue through 2028.
But by 2027, the 2.8-mile stretch of Loop 1604 between I-10 and U.S. Highway 281 will go from four lanes to 10 and the outdated cloverleaf at I-10 will become a five-level interchange with VIA Metropolitan Transit’s Park & Ride at the base and modern flyovers taller than a 10-story office tower.
TxDOT announced Wednesday the latest in what’s been nearly weekly closures since the work began, leading to traffic nightmares for drivers.
Here’s what you need to know:
- This weekend, Loop 1604 will be closed in both directions from La Cantera Parkway, near UTSA and Valero headquarters, all the way to Stone Oak Parkway, just before U.S. Highway 281.
- Loop 1604’s frontage roads also will be closed through the interchange.
- The main lanes of I-10 will be closed in both directions through the Loop 1604 interchange. I-10’s frontage roads will remain open through the interchange.
- All four cloverleaf ramps of the interchange will be closed.
Plus: Starting at 9 p.m. Friday and lasting until 5 a.m. Saturday, Northwest Military Highway will be completely closed where it passes under Loop 1604.
Also during that time, the left lane of the Loop 1604 eastbound frontage road from Lockhill Selma Road to Northwest Military Highway will be closed.
Police officers will be directing traffic through the intersections during all closures, according to an announcement from TxDOT.
If you must travel through the area, here are your options:
- Think twice and wait it out at home.
- Or give it until Saturday. On that evening, a portion of Loop 1604, between Vance Jackson Road and Stone Oak Parkway, is expected to reopen at the end of the day with a newly added lane open to traffic.
TxDOT plans to provide these alternate routes through the area:
- If you’re headed toward San Antonio from places like The Rim or Boerne, take Exit 556B immediately after La Cantera Parkway and follow the frontage road through the interchange until you reach the first entrance ramp after the interchange.
- Going the other direction? Take westbound Exit 556B after UTSA Boulevard and follow the frontage road through the interchange. You’ll be able to get back on the highway after the Loop 1604 interchange.
- Driving east on Loop 1604 will require a small detour. Take the Vance Jackson Road exit ramp to the eastbound frontage road, then follow signs that will direct you to the turnaround at UTSA Boulevard and I-10. Traffic will reenter Loop 1604 — several miles east of the interchange — at Blanco Road.
- Westbound traffic on Loop 1604 will have to exit at Blanco Road and follow the frontage road to the turnaround at La Cantera Parkway and I-10, then to Loop 1604’s westbound frontage road. The entrance ramp to Loop 1604 will be open after Valero Way.
Some good news in the short term: No major closures are scheduled for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, May 25-27.
