GUN BARREL CITY -- Cedar Creek Lake will likely see multiple bridge and road improvements in the next few years, thanks to the efforts of local leaders, according to a Texas Department of Transportation official. Randy C. Hopmann, district engineer for the agency's Tyler District, told the Cedar Creek Lake Area Chamber of Commerce at its monthly meeting March 14 a new, larger bridge connecting Seven Points and Gun Barrel on Highway 334 would probably be constructed in about five years. "You've helped put that bridge back on TxDot's radar," Hopmann said. "We couldn't have gotten anything done without you going down there." Hopmann said the outside range for seeing the new bridge go up would be a decade, but he thinks it will be closer to five years. "I'm very hopeful and optimistic that we can accomplish it within that time frame," Hopmann said. A delegation of local civic leaders and public officials went to Austin last month to meet with the agency's officials, and they secured a commitment for a $2 million environmental impact study on a new bridge. Hopmann said the agency had completed engineering studies about constructing a four-lane bridge on Highway 334, improving other bridges and widening roads, but funding problems led to the plans being shelved until now. The environmental impact study, which is required before the bridge plan can move forward and will involve 50 agencies, will be completed within about two years, Hopmann said. "Be patient with us and keep giving us your support," Hopmann said of the proposed $50 million project. Hopmann said the bridge is still in good condition, but traffic studies show it is overburdened. He noted that on the Seven Points side 12,000 vehicles pass along Highway 334 daily, and that on the Gun Barrel City side there are 16,000 vehicles. The engineering studies for the new bridge considered different options, including one bridge with four lanes and two separate bridges with two lanes each. The final form has yet to be determined, but the impact on commercial real estate in the area will be kept to a minimum, he said. The engineer, who formerly lived in the Cedar Creek Lake area, said the new Highway 198 bridge that was completed in recent years demanded priority because it was in worse condition than the Highway 334 bridge. "It's a good time to refocus on the Highway 334 bridge," he said. Hopmann said another project expected to be undertaken in the same time frame involves the widening of Highway 274 from Trinidad to just past the spillway. The plan calls to add six feet of width to eight miles of roads. There are also concerns about Highway 274 running from Seven Points to the Kaufman County line needing to be widened, and the severe curves in Highway 198 in the Payne Springs area needs to be straightened out, he said. Hopmann said the stretch of Highway 274 in Kaufman County falls in the Dallas District so any improvements to that area would be handled by it.