The Texas Transportation Commission recently approved an update of TxDOT’s $70 billion Unified Transportation Program (UTP). The UTP represents a 10-year project funding outlook that includes new plans to add or improve more than 1,200 miles of roadways to improve safety and mobility, and reduce congestion.
Seventy billion dollars is an historic amount of funding. It includes over $38 billion in additional funding, which Gov. Abbott and the Legislature presented to the public for approval as Proposition 7 and the ending of diversions of highway funds for other purposes. The 12,000 men and women of TxDOT stand ready to immediately execute on these projects that will keep people and freight moving safely and efficiently throughout our state.
Texas is a dynamic state with a robust economy. With more than 27 million people living in Texas – a number that is expected to double by the year 2050 – this transportation funding is not only more than welcome, it’s absolutely crucial to our overall quality of life, economic health and global competitiveness. TxDOT is committed to anticipating and addressing the transportation demands of our entire state. The 10-year plan, the largest in TxDOT history, dedicates funding to address safety, maintenance and rural connectivity needs across all 25 TxDOT districts and 25 metropolitan planning areas throughout the state.
Gov. Abbott has charged the Texas Transportation Commission with addressing the growing congestion problem facing our largest and most congested metro areas. Ninety-seven of Texas’ Top 100 congested roadways are in the five major metro areas, resulting in the average driver in those areas losing over 52 hours last year while suffering through traffic chokepoints. Over the next four years, $2.5 billion of the influx of new dollars will fund 19 much-needed new projects in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio through a program called Texas Clear Lanes. This program is intended to add capacity and improvements to some of our most notorious areas of gridlock in those major cities. In addition, the Commission has targeted funds to improve our major transportation and trade corridors, energy sector roads and hurricane evacuation routes.
There is still much to be done. Next August, the Commission will be programming additional projects within the monies available to it. TxDOT is reaching out for public input as it works with transportation professionals and other stakeholder groups throughout the state to ensure a quality planning process.
The members of the Texas Transportation Commission – Jeff Austin of Tyler, Victor Vandergriff of Arlington, J. Bruce Bugg, Jr., of San Antonio, Laura Ryan of Houston and me, from Odessa – have worked diligently to maximize the resources that Gov. Abbott, the Legislature and taxpayers of this state have provided to us. As the Commission and the department which it oversees, TxDOT, celebrate their 100-year anniversary, we are ever more dedicated to serving the public and continuing the tradition of excellence that has been established by those who served before us.
Tryon Lewis
Chairman, Texas Transportation Commission
Showing posts with label Texas Transportation Commission. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Texas Transportation Commission. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 2
Wednesday, March 29
US 281 expansion about to kick off
The headline is no typo, and April Fools is still a few days away.
No, this is for real.
Unless you're a total newbie to San Antonio, you're well aware of the long saga that has been the proposed expansion of US 281 north of Loop 1604.
Friday morning Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Texas House Speaker Joe Straus and Texas Transportation Commissioner J. Bruce Bugg, Jr., will host state and local elected representatives and other transportation stakeholders to break ground on the expansion of U.S. 281 between Loop 1604 and the Bexar-Comal county line in north San Antonio.
Part of the expansion falls under the statewide congestion relief initiative known as Texas Clear Lanes.
The $374.3 million expansion project will be constructed in two phases. The first phase of the U.S. 281 expansion will actually begin construction in May and adds non-tolled express lanes between Loop 1604 and Stone Oak Parkway. The Texas Tranpsortation Commission awarded the $192.3 million contract to Webber Construction last month.
The second phase, which will begin in 2019, starts just north of Stone Oak Parkway and continues to the county line.
We'll have more details next week about the project and how it will impact you during the four years it will take to complete.
The event Friday begins at 10:30 a.m. and will wrap up around 11:30 a.m. We will live-stream the event via Twitter for those interested in tuning in.
No, this is for real.
Unless you're a total newbie to San Antonio, you're well aware of the long saga that has been the proposed expansion of US 281 north of Loop 1604.
Friday morning Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Texas House Speaker Joe Straus and Texas Transportation Commissioner J. Bruce Bugg, Jr., will host state and local elected representatives and other transportation stakeholders to break ground on the expansion of U.S. 281 between Loop 1604 and the Bexar-Comal county line in north San Antonio.
Part of the expansion falls under the statewide congestion relief initiative known as Texas Clear Lanes.
The $374.3 million expansion project will be constructed in two phases. The first phase of the U.S. 281 expansion will actually begin construction in May and adds non-tolled express lanes between Loop 1604 and Stone Oak Parkway. The Texas Tranpsortation Commission awarded the $192.3 million contract to Webber Construction last month.
The second phase, which will begin in 2019, starts just north of Stone Oak Parkway and continues to the county line.
We'll have more details next week about the project and how it will impact you during the four years it will take to complete.
The event Friday begins at 10:30 a.m. and will wrap up around 11:30 a.m. We will live-stream the event via Twitter for those interested in tuning in.
Tuesday, September 27
Transportation Tuesday: The most congested roads in Texas aren't in San Antonio
We often are asked about congestion levels in San Antonio, and we have some actual data to back up what we say on the topic. In fact, the annual list of most congested roadways compiled by Texas A&M University's Texas Transportation Institute has recently been released and can be seen online. It's a great place to start.
What does it mean for San Antonio? Well, a couple of things.
What does it mean for San Antonio? Well, a couple of things.
We've got it REALLY good here
Yes, there are some sticky spots around San Antonio. We're still doing pretty darned good, though. Our average commute times are hovering right around the 25-minute mark, putting us right up there with the traffic woes of Hartford, Connecticut, and of Columbus, Ohio.
The fact is we're nowhere near the worst traffic in the United States, despite being the seventh-largest city in the country - and the largest city without some form of managed lanes on our highway system. The plain truth is that, for a city as big as we are, we've got things pretty darned good.
This doesn't mean things aren't devoid of fun when we have some rain or when a crash occurs - that always gums things up. This means under normal conditions our commute flows pretty darned well.
Statewide, by the way, Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth own more than three-fourths of the congested corridors on the list.
Our worst corridor is ... US 281
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| Photo credit: San Antonio Express-News |
The most congested corridor in San Antonio is, officially, US 281 between Lp 1604 and Stone Oak Parkway. It's actually crept into the state-wide top-30, something no segment of roadway in San Antonio has done in more than five years. Sitting at No. 26 overall, those commuting this corridor are seeing peak travel times at 165 percent off-peak hours, leading to about 320,156 total hours of delay each year, per mile.
The good news: we've got a plan for that. We're finalizing plans to expand US 281 with overpasses and continuous frontage roads, and expect to start construction early 2017. We're doing our best to make sure construction delays are minimal, but by 2020 you should see this corridor fall rapidly off our congested corridors list.
Other areas of note across the region are I-35 between Loop 1604 and downtown (three separate segments are on the Top 100 list, ranking at 47, 53 and 66) and I-410 between US 281 and Culebra Road (again, multiple segments are on the list, ranking 72 and 75 overall). Again, we've got current or future projects moving for each of these areas to help.
All told, the San Antonio area owns eight roadway segments on the list - and already have a plan for each area.
We still have room to improve
While things are still pretty darned good, congestion is a growing headache for most of us. Our population is growing at a rate that is far greater than the capacity of our existing infrastructure - we're adding something like 50 cars to our local roads every single day. Seriously.
We're trying to get ahead of this. The Texas Transportation Commission just approved Texas’ largest transportation plan in history, with $70 billion dedicated to addressing congestion, connectivity, preservation and improving safety for drivers over the next 10 years.
We've also got the Texas Clear Lanes initiative, led by Texas Transportation Commissioner J. Bruce Bugg, Jr. - a local from right here in San Antonio. Not only is that finding some extra funding to deal with the congestion we're seeing, it's also working with local partners to identify where and how to spend the money wisely.
Disclaimer:
The TTI study only looks at TxDOT maintained facilities, which means city and county roads are not measured in the study. This is for a number of reasons, but mostly because the traffic volume on state-owned roads is typically much higher than what you'll see on city or county roads. It really shouldn't impact the outcome of the study much, but it's worth mentioning.
Friday, December 6
November bids accepted
*Each month the routine business – that is, the approval of low-bid awards by the Texas Transportation Commission – will be announced as part of a push to ensure Texans know about each TxDOT construction project in their respective area. The idea here is to make sure every construction project, and not just the major ones, is recognized and accounted for - at least at the project's start.
A word about the bid proces.... Each month bids are accepted over the course of a few days for specific projects that are "let" across the state. The bids are sent to the Texas Transportation Commission, in Austin, to be officially awarded during their montly meeting (held toward the end of the month). By rule, TxDOT awards contracts to the lowest bonded bid - that helps eliminate any shenanigans in the bid process. We don't want Bobby to get all the work because he and Carl are best buds while Bill stands out in the cold, even though Bill might have the right qualifications. We want to be as fair as possible.
The projects described below are at least a few months from starting, and only the projects within the San Antonio District boundaries are described here. At any rate, here's our first of a monthly series announcing project contracts awarded to our contractors:
In an ongoing effort to improve safety and address congestion,the Texas Transportation Commission approved a total of $9.8 million to seal coat two stretches of the state highway system in Frio and in Kendall counties.
Clark Construction of Texas, Inc., submitted an accepted low bid of $4.7 million to seal coat Texas Spur 581 between Farm to Market 1582 and the southbound I-35 frontage road south of Pearsall. That work will take about six months to complete and should begin early spring 2014.
Ronald R. Wagner & Co. submitted an accepted low bid of $5.1 million to seal coat less than a mile of Ranch to Market 473 at FM 1376 in Kendall County. The work will take about eight months to complete and should begin early spring 2014.
“As Texas roadways become increasingly crowded, we must find ways to relieve congestion without compromising safety,” said Phil Wilson, TxDOT executive director. “Keeping travelers moving safely and efficiently will continue to be an ongoing priority as Texas welcomes nearly 1,000 newcomers each day.”
Seal coats, also known as chip seals, are simple and relatively inexpensive pavement surfaces designed to extend the life of a roadway. A seal coat is an application of a layer of asphalt binder covered with a layer of aggregate, or rock chips, atop an existing paved surface. The average life of a seal coat or surface treatment is about six to eight years; however, some have performed successfully for periods of up to 20 years.
These projects typically require lane closures to complete – often a single lane at a time – and, in rural areas, can cause traffic to be limited to a single lane in each direction. Temperature requirements for the asphalt limit work to spring, summer and fall months.
A word about the bid proces.... Each month bids are accepted over the course of a few days for specific projects that are "let" across the state. The bids are sent to the Texas Transportation Commission, in Austin, to be officially awarded during their montly meeting (held toward the end of the month). By rule, TxDOT awards contracts to the lowest bonded bid - that helps eliminate any shenanigans in the bid process. We don't want Bobby to get all the work because he and Carl are best buds while Bill stands out in the cold, even though Bill might have the right qualifications. We want to be as fair as possible.
The projects described below are at least a few months from starting, and only the projects within the San Antonio District boundaries are described here. At any rate, here's our first of a monthly series announcing project contracts awarded to our contractors:
In an ongoing effort to improve safety and address congestion,the Texas Transportation Commission approved a total of $9.8 million to seal coat two stretches of the state highway system in Frio and in Kendall counties.
Clark Construction of Texas, Inc., submitted an accepted low bid of $4.7 million to seal coat Texas Spur 581 between Farm to Market 1582 and the southbound I-35 frontage road south of Pearsall. That work will take about six months to complete and should begin early spring 2014.
Ronald R. Wagner & Co. submitted an accepted low bid of $5.1 million to seal coat less than a mile of Ranch to Market 473 at FM 1376 in Kendall County. The work will take about eight months to complete and should begin early spring 2014.
“As Texas roadways become increasingly crowded, we must find ways to relieve congestion without compromising safety,” said Phil Wilson, TxDOT executive director. “Keeping travelers moving safely and efficiently will continue to be an ongoing priority as Texas welcomes nearly 1,000 newcomers each day.”
Seal coats, also known as chip seals, are simple and relatively inexpensive pavement surfaces designed to extend the life of a roadway. A seal coat is an application of a layer of asphalt binder covered with a layer of aggregate, or rock chips, atop an existing paved surface. The average life of a seal coat or surface treatment is about six to eight years; however, some have performed successfully for periods of up to 20 years.
These projects typically require lane closures to complete – often a single lane at a time – and, in rural areas, can cause traffic to be limited to a single lane in each direction. Temperature requirements for the asphalt limit work to spring, summer and fall months.
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