High schoolers and early morning commuters cram together in long lines, rear view to rear view. The daily drive slows to a crawl as orange-vested workers scurry around, pouring and paving concrete and moving rebar. The construction on Debbie Lane in front of Ben Barber effects Legacy students directly, severely extending travel time to and from school and increasing morning stress.
The City of Mansfield plans to narrow and repave Debbie, bringing the road down to 2 lanes, a turn lane, and adding a median and sidewalks. The project will last about 13 months after beginning in early June. Senior Abby Walker drives to Ben Barber and changed her travel schedule to accommodate the roadwork.
“It increases my amount of travel time, an early start time, and increases the time between classes,” Walker said. “I think that it’s something that had to be done, so I don’t necessarily disagree with it.”
Construction and traffic congestion severely limit access to businesses on Debbie Lane, including QuikTrip, Habaneros, and Our Place restaurant. Gracie Barra Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, a Debbie Lane dojo owned by Junior Caden Clark’s dad, felt the impact of the roadwork.
“It takes a long time to get through with all this construction. It’s going pretty fast, it should hopefully get done faster,” Clark said. “I just drive through it coming to school.”
Ben Barber released a statement encouraging students to take buses, and to expect significant morning delays and unannounced closing of entrances and exits. Walker believes that the work, while necessary, took too long to begin.
“I think the city should have started construction first thing after the end of graduation, I think they waited two weeks after graduation is what happened, and they should have started the day after,” Walker said. “Every minute counts.”
