State officials have unveiled a ten year, $70 billion dollar highway improvement plan.
In Brazos County, that includes several major projects that were previously announced.
For the upcoming fiscal year, Brazos County has 16 projects. That includes more than $15 million to fund the new interchange by Easterwood Airport at FM 60 and 2818 and the state’s $2.6 million dollar share of improvements along South College in Bryan between Villa Maria and Inlow.
Another $4.4 million is budgeted towards 14 remaining projects in Brazos County during FY 2017.
More than $1.4 million of that funds the straightening of Elmo Weedon Road northeast of Bryan at two intersections…around Grassbur and Steephollow Roads.
Another $1.4 million next year is budgeted for traffic signals at six locations. College Station sites are Harvey and George Bush East and Harvey Mitchell and Longmire. Bryan locations are Villa Maria and South College, South College and Carson, Finfeather and Turkey Creek, and 29th and Texas.
The largest of the six remaining projects for FY 2017 is $732,000 dollars for adding a center left turn lane on Finfeather from Groesbeck to Bryan’s south city limits.
Looking ahead, there is $27.2 million dollars in funding to widen FM 2818 between FM 60 and George Bush Drive. Funding is over the 2018 and 19 fiscal years.
Also planned for FY 2018 is $5.2 million for additional improvements along University between Texas and the Northgate district, the state’s $2.2 million dollar share of work on Rock Prairie Road and the freeway, and $1.1 million to add a median to Harvey Mitchell/FM 2818 between Raymond Stotzer/FM 60 and Wellborn Road.
Another large project for future funding outside the B/CS city limits is $11.8 million in FY 2020 to repair OSR from FM 2223 east of Bryan to the Madison County line.
In Grimes County, there is $46.1 million dollars in next year’s funding for the Aggie Expressway, $6 million in FY 2018 to replace the Highway 30 bridge over Gibbons Creek, followed in FY 2021 by replacing two bridges on Highway 30 over the Navasota River.
In Robertson County, there is $7 million in FY 2018 to replace the Highway 79 bridge over the Little Brazos River and $3.7 million in FY 2019 to rebuild the FM 50 railroad crossing.
Click HERE to read and download the 1,210 page TxDOT 2017 Unified Transportation plan.
Click HERE to read and download the 49 page TxDOT Bryan district plan.
News release from TxDOT:
The Texas Transportation Commission today approved the 2017 Unified Transportation Program (UTP) with $70 billion worth of projects to help TxDOT meet the state’s growing transportation demands. The plan is the largest of its kind in the agency’s history that addresses capacity, maintenance and safety needs around state.
The 10-year plan, developed with extensive public input, targets congestion in the state’s most-populated areas and includes projects to better connect the major interstates in rural areas with local roads and highways. Also outside urban areas, the program calls for enhancing and completing interstate highways, and addressing the continuing needs within the energy sector and along hurricane evacuation routes.
“The actions today by the Texas Transportation Commission represent a historic investment in our state’s infrastructure,” said Governor Abbott. “Texans have sent a loud and clear message that they are tired of sitting in traffic, and this funding plan will significantly address safety, maintenance, connectivity and congestion on our crowded highways. The plan presented by the commission will allow Texas roads to keep pace with our population growth, provide much-needed congestion relief for working Texans and put the Lone Star State well on its way towards having a first-in-class highway system for decades to come.”
“The Unified Transportation Program reflects TxDOT’s commitment to planning for and meeting the mobility needs of our fast-growing state,” said Transportation Commission Chairman Tryon Lewis.
With more than $70 billion in total funding, the 2017 UTP represents a significant increase from last year’s 10-year plan, which included more than $33 billion worth of projects. The bulk of the additional funding will come from legislative- and voter-approved initiatives to allocate portions of oil and gas taxes, sales taxes and other taxes to the state highway fund. Ending the practice of appropriating state highway funds to agencies other than TxDOT and the passage of long-term federal transportation legislation also contributed to the additional funding.
The new funding in the 2017 UTP is largely allocated into program areas that address safety, maintenance, congestion and rural connectivity needs. It includes funding for all 25 TxDOT districts and 25 metropolitan planning areas throughout the state.