Drivers in East Parker County will notice a difference driving westbound on Interstate 20 at mile marker 411. The new Hudson Oaks exit ramp, between Lakeshore Drive and Centerpoint, opened Friday. The East Parker County Chamber of Commerce and the City of Hudson Oaks held a ribbon cutting on the ramp Friday morning to mark the occasion.

“The new ramp will provide improved access both for our existing businesses and for the future development around the movie theatre,” stated Hudson Oaks Mayor Pat Deen. The exit will provide westbound-Interstate-20 motorists with direct access to Jerry’s Nissan, Southwest Ford, Walmart, the entire Hudson Oaks Corners Retail Center, and the Connell development surrounding the City Lights movie theatre. They will then be able to get right back onto westbound I-20 easily, without having to go through any traffic lights.

Connell’s Hudson Hills Development is expected to bring restaurants, shopping, and entertainment to East Parker County. The development already has numerous new users under contract and construction activity will rise in the summer. Asked about the significance of this new exit ramp for the city, Assistant City Administrator Patrick Lawler said, “The exit ramp has already brought a lot of new development our way, and we expect to be able to provide new, exciting options for Parker County residents in the very near future.”