On westbound I-20 toward Aledo, the exit you used to take for FM 1187 and FM 3325 has been gone since March 18. Drivers now leave the interstate at the new permanent Exit 420 in the I-30 interchange area, east of the old ramp. The Fort Worth Report carried TxDOT spokesperson Shawna Russell Jones's reason for the change: "The closed exit ramp is in the location of a planned entrance ramp."
That one swap shows how TxDOT's $541 million Keep 20-30 Moving project is changing the drive around Aledo. The ramps that bring you home to FM 1187 got their permanent layouts this year, one at a time. The ramps that take you east on I-30 toward Fort Worth are where the detours are now, and TxDOT's posted return dates for most of them fall in 2027.
The Trip Home Already Runs on New Ramps
If your evening drive ends on FM 1187, most of what changed in 2026 is now permanent. Here is the westbound and homebound side, in order:
- March 18: The old westbound I-20 exit to FM 1187/FM 3325 closed for good. Westbound I-20 traffic now uses the new permanent Exit 420 in the I-30 interchange area. TxDOT posted a reconfiguration map when the switch happened.
- March 19: The eastbound I-20 entrance from FM 1187/FM 3325 moved to its new permanent ramp.
- August 14: The eastbound I-30 exit to Walsh Ranch Parkway came back into service.
- August 21: The eastbound I-20 frontage road from FM 1187 returned to full service, and the northbound free right turn reopened.
- September 17: The westbound I-30 exit to FM 1187/FM 3325 opened. That same day, the westbound I-20 frontage road approaching FM 1187/FM 3325 moved onto new pavement for the final phase of work at the intersection. The approach now has a dedicated left-turn lane, a through lane, and a shared through-and-right lane.
The westbound frontage road approach is still in its final construction phase, so the FM 1187 intersection isn't finished. Still, the exits that bring westbound drivers off I-20 and I-30 toward Aledo are now the ones TxDOT plans to keep. Since September 17, a driver coming home from either interstate has had a permanent exit to use.
Eastbound I-30 Is Where the Detours Are Now
The other direction is different. For anyone starting at FM 1187 and heading toward Fort Worth on I-30, several ramps along the route are closed. TxDOT's roadwork page lists these return dates:
| Ramp or road | Status | Expected back |
|---|---|---|
| Eastbound I-30 entrance from FM 1187/FM 3325 | Removed March 19 for construction of a new permanent ramp; traffic detours on the eastbound frontage road to the Walsh Ranch Parkway entrance | 2027 |
| Eastbound I-30 exit to SP 580 | Closed August 14 for reconstruction | Winter 2027 |
| Eastbound I-30 exit to Alemeda Street | Closed August 14; detour via the Chapel Creek Boulevard exit and the eastbound frontage road | Spring 2027 |
| Eastbound I-30 entrance from SP 580 | Closed August 14; detour on eastbound SP 580 to northbound I-820 | Spring 2027 |
| Westbound I-30 frontage road, RM 2871 to the Chapel Creek Boulevard exit | Closed September 25 for reconstruction; detour via Academy Boulevard and Amber Ridge Drive | Winter 2027 |
The first row matters most to Aledo. Getting onto eastbound I-30 at FM 1187 now means driving the frontage road and entering at Walsh Ranch Parkway, and that stays the routine until the permanent entrance opens sometime in 2027. Farther east, I-30 has been cut to two travel lanes in each direction between Linkcrest Drive and West Loop 820, with no end date posted. The westbound I-30 frontage road is also down to one lane between Alemeda Street and Academy Boulevard.
The eastbound I-20 entrance at FM 1187 is already permanent. A morning trip that starts on I-20 doesn't face the same detours as one that starts on I-30.
Five November Nights on Westbound I-30
The next scheduled closures that affect the drive home are overnight, on the westbound side:
- Nightly, November 9 through 12, 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.: Westbound I-30 drops to one lane between Linkcrest Drive and the I-20 interchange while crews move and reset safety barrier. TxDOT's listing says to expect delays and seek alternate routes.
- Overnight, November 13, 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.: Westbound I-30 closes from just past Chapel Creek Boulevard to the I-20 interchange for pavement work. The detour sends traffic off at the SP 580/Linkcrest Drive exit, along the westbound frontage road past Linkcrest Drive and Walsh Ranch Parkway, and back onto the highway at the westbound I-20 entrance ramp west of Walsh Ranch Parkway. TxDOT warns of significant delays.
If a Friday dinner in Fort Worth or a late flight home falls on November 13, plan on the frontage-road detour or leave earlier. TxDOT's usual windows are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays and 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. on weeknights. Lane closures are also allowed all day Saturday, and on Sunday when needed. Every listing can shift with weather. New entries on the roadwork page are marked with a double pound sign, so they're easy to spot when you check it.
Why the Pieces Don't Finish Together
The changes come out of order because the work is split into three projects with separate start and finish dates. TxDOT's project overview lays them out:
- Project 1 covers I-20 from Markum Ranch Road to the I-20/I-30 split and builds two new interchanges, at Bentley Drive and Walsh Ranch Parkway. Work began in August 2023. TxDOT's overview still says early 2026. The Fort Worth Report described it in March as expected to finish later this year.
- Project 2 covers I-20 and I-30 between FM 1187/FM 3325 and Linkcrest Drive. It began in September 2024 and is scheduled to finish in early 2028. It adds ramp changes and auxiliary lanes between FM 1187 and the split, and it lowers the interstate main lanes for bridge clearance at FM 1187 and Walsh Ranch Parkway.
- Project 3 covers I-30 from Linkcrest Drive to West Loop 820 and is estimated to finish in 2030.
When all three are done, the interstates will have six general-purpose lanes instead of four, continuous two-lane one-way frontage roads, and a rebuilt I-30 interchange at Spur 580/Camp Bowie Boulevard.
This explains the split described above. The ramps at FM 1187 sit in Project 2, which runs into early 2028, so the FM 1187 interchange will see construction for about another year after the 2027 ramp returns. The two-lane stretch of I-30 east of Linkcrest Drive sits in Project 3, which has the longest timeline of the three, 2030. The westbound exits came first because each new ramp went in before its old one was removed. The old westbound I-20 exit had to close so a new entrance ramp could be built in its place.
Off the Interstate, the Timelines Run Longer
The local roads Aledo uses every day are on slower schedules than the interstate work.
Bankhead Highway in Willow Park. BlueSky Utilities began a utility project in July on East Bankhead Highway. It runs from the southwest corner of the Beall-Dean development to Ranch House Road, down the middle of the road, and the city says it "will take at least a year to complete." Under the city's October 20 update, East Bankhead Highway and Willow Bend Drive are open to through traffic, with flaggers directing cars around active work zones during the day.
The Bankhead rebuild after that. Parker County's bond program describes Bankhead Highway Improvements as a 2.4-mile reconstruction from FM 1187 to Ranch House Road. The plan is a three-lane concrete road with curb, gutter, drainage, sidewalks and improvements at the FM 1187 intersection. The Community News reported in September that Phase 1 was out for bid with an October 15 bid opening. In the same update, the FM 5 intersection was at 90 percent design, with right-of-way acquisition expected to wrap up that month and utility coordination underway.
FM 1187 itself. The road that runs through Aledo is furthest from construction. That September county update said the FM 1187 widening and Old Weatherford Road "remain under continued consideration" in coordination with TxDOT and the North Central Texas Council of Governments. Parker County's April 13, 2026 program report lists the FM 1187 widening from FM 5 to Aledo Iona Road at $24 million and estimates it will be ready to let in February 2031. That is the estimate for bidding the job, not for finishing it. A separate TxDOT project on FM 1187, from Maverick Street to FM 5, would widen that 0.6-mile stretch to four lanes with a median and shared-use paths. At its July 2025 public meeting, the Community News reported that phase-one construction was anticipated to begin in late 2027. That date is more than a year old.
Put in order, the timeline looks like this. The interstate ramps return through 2027. Project 2 wraps up in early 2028, and Project 3 reaches Loop 820 in 2030. The county's FM 1187 widening isn't expected to be ready for bids before 2031.
As commutes change, so does what buyers ask about. For anyone around Aledo thinking about a move, the questions I hear lately include which entrance a home's morning drive actually uses and which ramps around it are still detoured. If you're weighing a home, or a few acres, off FM 1187 or Bankhead Highway and want to know how the 2027 ramp returns line up with your daily drive, Carson Gates can walk the map with you. Let's connect.
