Williamson County breaks ground on $132M Hero Way, RM 2243 expansion from Leander to Georgetown

Construction is officially underway on a $132 million road project expected to improve west-to-east mobility from Leander to Georgetown. Williamson County officials broke ground on the first phase of the reconstruction and widening of Hero Way and RM 2243 on Jan. 29.

What you need to know

The proposed project will transform Hero Way and RM 2243 into a divided, controlled-access highway from 183A Toll to Southwest Bypass. The existing rural two-lane roadway will be expanded into two main lanes running in each direction alongside two three-lane frontage roads.

For Phase 1A, the county will build the first frontage road from 183A Toll in Leander to Garey Park in Georgetown with one lane in each direction and a center turn lane. The ​​3.5-mile roadway will also include shared-use paths for cyclists and pedestrians.

The first phase of the project is anticipated to be complete by early 2028, according to county information.

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The cost

Beginning construction on Phase 1A required the county to acquire $100 million in right of way from about 60 landowners along the corridor, county officials said. The majority of this funding comes from the county’s $412 million road bond package approved by voters in 2019.

The expanded Hero Way and RM 4423 roadway is one of many projects outlined in the county’s Long Range Transportation Plan, Precinct 3 Commissioner Valerie Covey said. The plan details proposals for a vast network of roadways to improve mobility and accommodate the county’s projected growth.

“There’s not a county that I know of in the country that is as proactive as we are in transportation,” Covey said.

The $30 million construction of Phase 1A will be mostly funded by $20 million in federal funding, Precinct 2 Commissioner Cynthia Long said. Additionally, the city of Leander has contributed nearly $16 million toward right of way and construction costs.

Stay tuned

Williamson County plans to begin designing Phase 1B this year to extend the frontage road from Garey Park to Southwest Bypass, though construction remains “several years away” due to unfunded right of way and construction costs. Meanwhile, design work is underway for Phase 2, which would connect 183A Toll to Ronald Reagan Boulevard, with construction on part of that phase potentially starting by 2028.