DALLAS — Projects on White Rock Lake Trail will lead to a messy jog or commute near White Rock Lake for months.
After Dallas city staff received a preliminary report from engineers in April about steps to mitigate shoreline erosion threatening the trail at White Rock Lake, staff plan to install 1,125 linear feet of sheet piling from the existing trail adjacent to Garland Road in hopes of controlling the erosion.
“As an effort to manage the historical erosion issues at the shoreline of White Rock Lake near Garland Road, Planning and Design contracted with with Freese and Nichols in early 2024 to provide an evaluation of the erosion, which resulted in a report that was produced in April 2024 indicating that the shoreline is being eroded and failure of the trail will occur if something is not done to address the erosion,” a Dallas park board briefing presentation read.
City officials said last week that a “notice to proceed” is expected on that project this month, followed by design (expected to take about three months) and procurement for construction (expected to take another three months).
Construction, when it begins, is expected to take about six months.
City officials say they plan to create an alternate trail route during construction, and they’re monitoring to see if any changes warrant trail closure before construction begins.
“PKR is working with TPW [Texas Parks and Wildlife [TPW] and TxDOT [Texas Department of Transportation] on any traffic control plans,” a presentation delivered at a Dallas Park Board meeting this morning read.
The sheet piling is expected to be made of composite material rather than corrugated steel.
Additionally, TxDOT says work has already begun on installing permanent concrete barriers on State Highway 78 adjacent to the White Rock Lake Trail in hopes of protecting trail users from traffic on State Highway 78. The traffic barrier will be installed in place of a temporary water barrier on the west side of Garland Road from east Lawther Drive to San Rafael Drive.
“TxDOT and the city worked together to identify a solution after a couple of Incidents where vehicles crossed the trail after losing control,” the Texas Department of Transportation said in a statement.
The inside southbound lane of Garland Road will be closed throughout that project. That project is expected to be complete mid-March 2025.
After that work is done, city officials say they will continue to inspect and address erosion issues.
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