Denton to Install Five-Foot Sidewalk between DCTA Rail Trail and Existing Mayhill Sidepath
March 20, 2023
Denton’s upcoming $20 million Mayhill Road Phase 2 project will use five-foot sidewalks to connect the existing 10-foot DCTA Rail Trail and 10-foot Mayhill sidepath. City staff said that there was only room for five-foot sidewalks along certain portions of the project due to a lack of right-of-way.
Project overview shows planned five-foot sidewalks (yellow), planned 10-foot sidepaths (light blue) and existing 10-foot paths (dark blue).
When planning a road project, the City acquires land to ensure there is enough right-of-way to construct the planned project. The City will sometimes relocate poles and other utilities to ensure that a roadway is the desired width and is clear of utility poles or other hazards that could cause a crash.
Lack of right-of-way was cited as the reason for leaving utility poles and cables in the sidepath installed during the Mayhill Phase 1 project that was completed in 2021.
Poles and cables reach into the existing sidepath along Mayhill road.
Common Challenges for Road Projects: Right-of-Way and Funding
Right-of-way can take several years for a city to obtain. Denton began acquiring right-of-way for the Mayhill project around 2010, according to city meeting archives. This was before Denton adopted its first bike plan in early 2012.
City meeting archives as recent as April 2018 mention legal matters relating to right-of-way acquisition for the Mayhill widening project. Updates from the Mayhill project website suggest that the city did not finalize all project right-of-way and easements until late 2022, roughly 12 years after the city began work to acquire property for the project.
When a land owner does not want to sell their property, cities typically begin eminent domain proceedings, which can result in a multi-year legal process. The eminent domain process for a single property has been cited as a primary cause of delay for the Bonnie Brae Street project to widen the roadway and construct bicycle and pedestrian accommodations near the new Denton High School.
Read: Update: Denton High School Bicycle and Pedestrian Access (Bike Denton, 08/17/22)
City staff originally planned to complete the Bonnie Brae widening before the new high school opened but were unable to obtain all of the needed right-of-way in time. Certain funding sources require all right-of-way to be acquired before starting construction.
The State of Texas and counties often award external funding to cities for major road projects like Mayhill Road that are expected to help increase travel speeds for regional automobile traffic. This external funding has an expiration date, however. When cities are too slow to complete projects and spend the awarded funding, they risk losing the funding and decrease their chance of being awarded funding in the future.
City meeting archives indicate Denton acquired roughly $69 million in funding agreements from the State of Texas and Denton County in January 2010 for the Mayhill widening project. The amount of time that has passed since this funding was awarded increases the pressure for the City to complete the Mayhill Road projects. The rising cost of construction each year also adds pressure.
Acquiring additional right-of-way could further delay completion of the Mayhill widening project that was originally planned and funded a decade ago. According to city staff, they hope the five-foot sidewalk will provide some connection where none currently exists between the DCTA Rail Trail and the existing Mayhill sidepath.
While a continuous 10-foot wide connection between the rail trail and existing Mayhill sidepath will not be part of the current Mayhill Phase 2 project, city staff say they plan to continue looking into options to complete the 10-foot wide connection.
Importance of a Connected Mayhill Road for Micromobility
Mayhill Road is part of the 2045 Regional Veloweb, a regional expressway for active transportation coordinated by the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG). NCTCOG recommends a minimum width of 10 feet for two-way community pathways and a minimum width of 12 feet for regional pathways.
2045 Regional Veloweb for the DFW region.
Denton’s Bike Plan, last updated in 2022, identifies Mayhill Road as part of its primary bike network, a core network of connected bicycle routes.
The plan identifies Mayhill Road as the main bicycle connector between the DCTA Rail Trail, future Pecan Creek Trail, McKinney Street leading to Ryan High School and a sidepath along University Drive / US 380 that will connect to the existing Greenbelt trail.
The 10-foot sidepath on the north side of US 380 between Mayhill Road and the Greenbelt is already under construction. One of the top wishes Denton residents have shared with Bike Denton is the ability to access the Greenbelt without a car, suggesting Mayhill could see much more bike traffic when the US 380 sidepath is complete.
Ten-foot sidepath under construction on the north side of US 380 in January, 2023.
The Pecan Creek Trail is expected to be Denton’s next major trail project. City staff are currently seeking funding to construct the trail. Completion of the Pecan Creek Trail is also likely to increase bicycle traffic along Mayhill Road to and from the rail trail.
Read: Pecan Creek Trail Master Plan Approved, Staff Seek Funding (Bike Denton, 02/02/23)
The existing Mayhill sidepath also connects to a six-foot sidewalk on East McKinney Street that ties in to Ryan High School. Some students and school employees traveling to Ryan High School by bicycle or other small mobility device are likely to use the rail trail and then the Mayhill sidepath to connect to the sidewalk on McKinney Street between Mayhill and the high school.
Entrance of Ryan High School on East McKinney Street. A six-foot sidewalk on the north side connects Mayhill Road to the high school.
A continuous 10-foot wide connection between the 10-foot DCTA rail trail and the 10-foot existing Mayhill sidepath will become more important as these key routes and destinations are connected and usage increases.
Project Status
The Mayhill Phase 2 project design was finalized in September 2022. In January 2023, the Denton City Council approved a contractor to build the project. Staff anticipate substantial completion in summer of 2024 and final completion in October 2024.
Follow updates for the Mayhill Phase 2 project on Discuss Denton.
Construction is underway for Mayhill Phase 2.
