HEARNE, Texas — Known as the crossroads of Texas, Hearne brings in thousands of vehicles a day through Highway 6. Lifelong resident and landowner Nelda Calhoun has seen the growing changes in the community for herself.
“We have watched Highway 6 expand and take a little of our land, but the Highway 14 concerns us because it looks like it will be a four-lane road," Calhoun said
Calhoun is just one of many concerned residents of Hearne after hearing of TxDOT’s I-14 Central Texas Corridor Study that would expand the existing 25 miles of road in Waco though West Texas going all the way to Georgia.
Bob Colwell with the TxDOT Bryan District explains that the project is just lines on a map... for now.
“We will pick up from Bell County and go all the way into Walker County in our area and from there the Beaumont district and start working with Louisiana and Georgia as we go across state lines," Colwell said.
The current plan is for I-14 to go around the city of Hearne, something that resident Mary Heath believes is not in the best interest for the city’s efforts to grow.
“We’re getting an industrial business park and some new housing developments, so all the money and time going into this if I-14 goes around us what we’ve done would be in vain," Heath said.
While this plan is still in development, Calhoun hopes TxDOT can find a way to make sure Hearne isn’t overlooked.
“I would not want to see people go around Hearne and leave us as a ghost town when we are just now attracting industry," Calhoun said.
For anyone who might have missed the information sessions of TxDOT's I-14 expansion head over to Txdot.gov and search “I-14 Central".
