Lucas has grown over the past five years, but nothing like Princeton, its neighbor to the east on the other side of Lake Lavon. Princeton is now the fastest-growing city in the country, and much of that traffic has to go right through the heart of Lucas to get to and from work in the Dallas area. That's created a traffic chokepoint at the intersection of East Lucas Rd and Southview, which leads to Wylie. Thousands of vehicles go through this intersection every day and it's become a sore point for many.
The Texas Dept of Transportation has done a great job widening the intersection, so traffic delays have improved, but it hasn't completely solved the issue. What's happened is those traveling to and from Princeton have started using Lucas side streets as shortcuts to avoid this area, and that's become an irritant to residents who live there and have never seen any traffic on their streets.
There are more projects underway in Lucas widening some streets, but I'm afraid that is never going to ease the situation completely. The good news is, residents like us know which streets to avoid and at what time. Other than those times, Lucas slows down to its former pace, and it's an idyllic place to live and feel a bit like you're living in the country.
