Residents of El Campo can look forward to smoother drives on Wharton Street, also known as FM 653. The city recently finished upgrading sewer lines along the nearly three-mile stretch, boosting capacity for over forty percent of local homes and businesses. This key step clears the way for a major state project worth twenty-two million dollars. Texas transportation officials plan to bid the job in June and award it by December. The overhaul will widen the bumpy, patched two-lane road into a modern three-lane street with curbs, gutters, and sidewalks near Friendship Park.