Senator Eliot Shapleigh - El Paso, Texas

ROUND ROCK — Among farmhouses and cow pastures, traffic often comes to a crawl on the two-lane road in one of Williamson County's fastest-growing areas.

FM 1460 connects Round Rock residents to the new Seton Medical Center Williamson and the city's higher education center along University Boulevard, where there are plans for a nursing school.

And traffic will only get worse as Texas A&M University builds a medical school in the area and more commercial development and subdivisions are added.

Plans to widen the road, which serves as an alternative to Interstate 35 between Round Rock and Georgetown, stalled in the fall when the Texas Department of Transportation's funding for existing projects dried up.

In an unusual move, Round Rock and Georgetown, along with Williamson County and private developers, are considering teaming up to take over the project to widen FM 1460.

But if they do so, the road will be removed from the state's system, and the cities will permanently inherit the maintenance responsibility.

This fiscal year, the state budgeted $113,000 to maintain the road, TxDOT spokesman Marcus Cooper said.

And while the fast-growing cities of Round Rock and Georgetown, which have relatively high tax bases, are trying to find ways to take on major road improvements once under the state's jurisdiction, with TxDOT funding expected to continue shrinking this year, local governments across the state may feel forced to take on costly projects.

"I think with the funding situation like it is, if local governments want roads built, they're going to have to start taking them over," county road consultant Mike Weaver said.

The department's financial situation stems from a combination of cutbacks in federal funding, inflation and stagnant revenue from the gas tax, said TxDOT's Austin district engineer, Bob Daigh.

Construction costs have increased significantly in recent years, Daigh said, and the federal government rescinded $660 million last year and intends to take away $257 million more in the near future.

"What Texans are facing is a perfect storm in transportation funding," he said.

As rural communities begin to urbanize, it is not unusual for state roads to be transferred to local governments, but TxDOT spokesman John Hurt said such moves usually occur at the local jurisdictions' request.

Not all communities can afford to inherit highways from the state, though. There were plans to widen a congested two-lane road in Elgin that provides access to a high school and elementary school. The state did the planning to improve the road, but the project is now on hold because of the funding cuts, Elgin City Manager Jeff Coffee said.

"We're not even thinking about (taking over the road) because of the funding issues," Coffee said.

Other Central Texas highway projects that have been put on hold include widening Texas 195 between Georgetown and Killeen and extending O'Connor Drive in Williamson County from RM 620 to Texas 45 North.

Before the project stalled, TxDOT bought right of way for the FM 1460 expansion in Round Rock and planned to continue to maintain the road.

Now, Round Rock officials are planning to widen two sections of the road. The total cost is expected to be $27 million to $32 million.

Williamson County and the City of Round Rock each plan to contribute $7.5 million. Round Rock's contribution would come from a city fund. Williamson County is still considering funding options, County Commissioner Ron Morrison said.

The rest of the money will come from the Waterstone Development Group, an Austin company that will develop the land on either side of the road, land which is currently owned by the Avery family.

The company and the Avery family are planning on a development that will include single- and multifamily residences such as townhomes and apartments, along with parks, trails and a town center with shops, Waterstone project manager Theresa Canchola said.

Another twist could slow the plan: If Round Rock and its partners expand the road, TxDOT requires the entire section of FM 1460, which extends into Georgetown, to be taken off the state's highway system.

But Georgetown is not as far into the planning process as Round Rock.

The city is already considering adopting another road, Williams Drive, from the state system, which is the first priority, said Gabe Sansing, a Georgetown City Council member and chairman of the Georgetown Transportation Advisory Board.

"We're sitting on a real dilemma," Council Member Farley Snell said. "Suddenly, federal funds dried up; meanwhile, we have local priorities struggling against new priorities."

The current cost estimate to make Georgetown's section of FM 1460 a four-lane rural highway with a divider is $20.3 million.

The Georgetown City Council is considering putting a bond proposition on the November ballot that would pay for widening its part, but how that will affect the timing of the project in Round Rock is unclear, Georgetown city spokesman Keith Hutchinson said.