Posted on 1/13/2008, 8:01:32 PM by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Construction of the Trans-Texas Corridor is a long way off, but Texas Department of Transportation officials are letting people in areas affected by the project speak up now.
The project, an extension of Interstate 69, will run from Texarkana to Laredo with a branch in the Corpus Christi area heading south toward Brownsville, Department of Transportation spokesman Norm Wigington said. Brazoria County and Houston are in areas expected to be affected by construction and operation of the roadway, slated for completion sometime in the next 50 years.
It’s not clear what that impact of the highway will be, but the public is welcome to ask that and many other questions, Wigington said.
“We have a very preliminary plan at this moment and the meetings are designed to receive information and respond to questions,” Wigington said. “There’s a lot of information out there about the Trans-Texas Corridor and people have a lot of questions. This is an opportunity for the public to meet TxDOT representatives and ask those questions.”
There will be 11 town hall meetings beginning Tuesday in Texarkana, including one at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 24 at the Rosenberg Civic Center, according to a transportation department press release. These meetings are less formal than public hearings, of which there will be 46.
The first public hearing will be Feb. 4 Brownsville before moving into Southeast Texas in the middle of the month. Public hearings include 5 p.m. Feb. 13 in the Lake Jackson Civic Center, Feb. 12 in Houston, Feb. 14 in Texas City and Feb. 25 in El Campo and Rosenberg.
“This is a long-range project to be completed in 50 years,” Wigington said. “We’re going to be doing lots of preliminary planning for the next generation of highways. This is an initial step of getting information from and to people.”
Even though details on the roadway and impact zones are not specific, the project is important to Brazoria County residents and businesses, said Robert Worley, CEO of the Economic Development Alliance for Brazoria County.
“When you have a high-growth area like Brazoria County, if you don’t stay ahead of the transportation curve you never get caught up,” Worley said. “It goes well beyond a surface need. They really do need to hear the real facts from the public.”
The location of the Trans-Texas Corridor near Brazoria County will help with over-the-road transportation in coming years, Worley said. It also could reduce transportation snarls along I-45, I-10, Beltway 8 and Loop 610 in Houston.
“It’s close enough to us to be meaningful in regards to reducing traffic congestion and improving the ability of truckers to get from Point A to Point B,” Worley said. “From a business standpoint, it will be a means of opening up new corridors and relieving congestion from existing roads.”
Port Freeport Executive Director Pete Reixach sees the eventual construction as a positive move for Brazoria County industry.
“We’re spending a lot of money improving the waterside facility of the port with new docks and dredging of the channel,” Reixach said. “Any time you can have support from the infrastructure side, it’s of great benefit. We see the designation of Highway 59 and I-69 as a major boost for us, even though it’s built in phases.”
Public hearings are a first step in education, according to information at the Web site txdot.gov. This summer, a final environmental impact study will be prepared with anticipated federal approval of that study this winter, according to information on the Web site.
For now, information — both into and out of the transportation department — is the focus, Brazoria County transportation department engineer Larry Heckathorn said.
“The main thing they want is input from the public in the areas they’re looking at for this project,” Heckathorn said. “There have been some concerns in the past on the way TxDOT selects routes for projects and this will help them gather input. It’s unfortunately a long process to get some of these projects to the point of design and building, and they’re trying to get out all of the information we have and to listen to what the people have to say.”
John Lowman covers Brazoria County for The Facts.
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PUBLIC HEARINGS
Starting Feb. 4, the Texas Department of Transportation will have a series of public hearings to gather public comment on the I-69/Trans-Texas Corridor. Each hearing will begin with an open house at 5 p.m. followed by the hearing at 6:30 p.m.
Nearby meetings
Feb. 12 Houston
Feb. 13 Lake Jackson
Feb. 14 Texas City
Feb. 20 Edna
Feb. 21 El Campo
Feb. 25 East Bernard and Rosenberg
Feb. 26 Katy and Sealy
information
Go to keeptexasmoving.com.
Trans-Texas Corridor PING!
Man,what a large project.
I hope the Texans have better luck than we did here in Massachusetts with that great boondoggle,The Big Dig.
These meetings will accomplish nothing at all.
The government wants the corridor and that’s the end of it.
These are only an escape valve, intended to fool folks into thinking they’ve had input that will alter the plans in any way shape or form.
Nonsense. I’ve seen this countless times. It just doesn’t work. It was never intended to.
“These are only an escape valve, intended to fool folks into thinking they’ve had input that will alter the plans in any way shape or form.”
Hello, everyone!
If they really mean to reduce snarl and freight traffic tie-ups, they’d be spending money on upgrading rail at $1,000,000.00 per mile, not building more concrete and asphalt ribbons at $13,500,000.00 per mile.
BTTT
LOL, the Big Dig fiasco is one of a kind my FRiend, NO other state can be as stooooooooooopid and corrupt as MA!
Here in Australia we have a lot of rail congestion with all the iron ore and coal.
With peak oil, will there even be a need for big highways in the US?
We'll find other ways to keep cars on the road, IMO.
Here’s my question;
Regardless of building this corridor or not, why is it being called I-69? I-69 should roll up from Alabama through Tennessee and Kentucky on it’s way to Indiana so that it would be located between I-65 and I-75 in order to maintain the original numbering system with low numbered roads in the south and west and high numbered roads in the north and east. I-39 or if located west of I-35, I-33 would make more sense.
Maybe they will number it as a feeder road,like I-169.
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