The Texas Department of Transportation is proposing the project to help untangle traffic and improve safety at Interstate 37 and Southeast Military Drive.
SAN ANTONIO — Relief may be on the way for one of the south side’s busiest intersections.
The Texas Department of Transportation is proposing a $40 million project to untangle traffic at Interstate 37 and Southeast Military Drive, an area booming with growth that far outpaces the roads built decades ago.
The project includes a bypass ramp connecting directly to Brooks and a new “diverging diamond interchange” designed to improve traffic flow. TxDOT officials say an identical layout at Blanco Road and Loop 1604 is set to open this winter, with a similar interchange already in use at Bandera and 1604.
“About 87,000 people travel along this intersection every day and in the next 20 years it’s going to almost double,” said Jennifer Serold, Public Information Officer for TxDOT. “It’s going to be a drastic change to their commute…At minimum, it’s going to reduce their travel time through the intersection by at least 50 percent if not more depending on which way they’re traveling.”
Residents react at open house
At an open house Tuesday night, neighbors viewed renderings of the project and shared their opinions. Many welcomed the long-awaited changes.
“We were always saying how the south side never gets anything, we don’t have restaurants and we always have to go to the north side for everything, but with the growth comes the growing pains as well,” said Veronica Orosco, who lives off Southeast Military Drive.
Orosco said the area’s infrastructure was never designed for the level of development happening now. “When I would always come to the Brooks town hall meetings, we always spoke up about this intersection,” she said.
Others described the headaches of daily congestion.
“From SE Military to Southton would take us approximately nine minutes. Now we’re looking at 25 minutes,” said Carol Hipolito. “Change is scary, but we know from other parts of town that it will benefit this area and make it a smoother drive…If only we could take a nap and it’d be done, that’d be great. But we hear it’s only three years. It’s not 10, it’s not 5.”
Orosco pointed to rush-hour backups as a major safety concern. “The congestion of everyone exiting from work at 5 o’clock right now — if you were to go there, you’d see it’s backed up onto 37,” she said. “So you have people driving fast and maybe not stopping, that’s where the accidents come in.”
TxDOT laid out visualizations and renderings of the proposed interchange, while simultaneously hosting an online open house for those who couldn’t make it in-person.
Mixed opinions
While many neighbors supported the plan, not everyone was convinced. Some told KENS 5 they believe the $40 million project is too expensive and that TxDOT should instead add another lane to I-37.
Still, many residents said seeing the visualizations made the future easier to picture.
“I have actually already sent the link to the visual to a couple of people. I’m like the chismosa,” Hipolito joked. “If I see it, everybody has to know about it.”
Orosco added: “I know construction we’re not gonna like it, but we’re gonna love what’s coming.”
Next steps
TxDOT says the project is still in the planning phase and undergoing environmental reviews. If approved, construction could begin in late 2026 and last about three years.
“If this project goes through, this will be the second [diverging diamond interchange] in San Antonio,” Serold said.
Neighbors who couldn’t attend the open house can review the plans online. Click here to learn more about the proposed project.