Tag Archives: TxDOT

Houston-Austin rail update

Posted on September 15, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Houston Tomorrow: The Texas Department of Transportation is planning to fund environmental and financial feasibility studies for a passenger rail line connecting Houston to Austin, according to the Texas Tribune and KUT Austin. The planned line would be a 110mph … Continue reading →

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85 MPH speed limit officially approved

Posted on September 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines. The Texas Department of Transportation has approved an 85 mph speed limit for an upcoming 40-mile stretch of Texas 130 from Austin to Seguin. Currently, no road in the country has a posted speed … Continue reading →

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Roundabouts in the sky

Posted on September 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Imagine driving into downtown Houston on interstates 10 or 45, or U.S. 59, and having to merge with all other incoming traffic onto an elevated, one-way traffic circle around the cluster of … Continue reading →

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Funding to rebuild Yale Street Bridge acquired

Posted on August 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Good news. Calling the Yale Street bridge “functionally obsolete” after a recent engineering study, the Texas Department of Transportation has secured “out of cycle funding” to replace the bridge, Councilwoman Ellen Cohen announced late Monday. Cohen said that means the … Continue reading →

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Yale Street Bridge to get makeover

Posted on August 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

You may recall that last November the load limit on the Yale Street Bridge was reduced by TxDOT to 8,000 lbs per single axle and 10,000 lbs per tandem axle, which has resulted in truck traffic being forbidden on the … Continue reading →

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Buffalo Bayou begins its makeover

Posted on July 11, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This is going to be great. The jogging and biking trails that wind through Buffalo Bayou Park west of downtown are about to get a bit more circuitous as a $55 million effort to transform the area into an iconic … Continue reading →

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I can drive 85

Posted on June 10, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

And so can you, on the right road. State transportation officials are testing a new 41-mile segment of an Austin area toll road to see whether it would be safe to post the state’s first 85 mph maximum speed limit. … Continue reading →

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Tomorrow’s traffic jams are being planned today

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I have two things to say about this. Projects to widen U.S. 290 and Texas 288 with a mix of free and toll lanes in an attempt to ease congestion in the traffic-choked corridors would get a jump-start under a … Continue reading →

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About that “solution” for bike trail obstruction

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Me, last month: Meanwhile, two weeks ago there was a story about TxDOT closing the White Oak Bayou Hike and Bike Trail between Ella and 34th streets while there is construction on the service road for 610 North at East TC Jester. … Continue reading →

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You can drive 75

Posted on January 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Pedal to the metal, y’all. The Texas Transportation Commission approved 75 mph speed limits for nearly 1,500 miles of interstate in 60 counties. The action follows a state law approved last year providing for the Texas Department of Transportation to … Continue reading →

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Houston-Austin rail study

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From Houston Tomorrow: The Texas Department of Transportation presented results from a study on the potential for new 110 mph passenger rail service between Houston and Austin, potentially connecting College Station, according to Guidry News and documented in the minutes of the December … Continue reading →

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Council approves B-Cycle, and other bike news

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

One other item that Council approved on its last day of business for the year was to clear the way for the city to start up bike sharing with B-cycle. As you know, I’ve been following this along, and am … Continue reading →

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Reminder: Get your written comments about I-45 to TxDOT

Posted on December 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the latest email from the I-45 Coalition: I hope you had an opportunity to attend at least one of TxDOT’s public meeting (11/15 at Jeff Davis High School & 11/17 at Aldine High School).  I understand that the Davis … Continue reading →

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Yale Street Bridge load limit reduced by TxDOT

Posted on November 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This hit my inbox on Wednesday afternoon: Yale Street Bridge Load Limit Reduced by TxDOT A recent assessment of the Yale Street Bridge over White Oak Bayou performed by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDot) has resulted in a reduction … Continue reading →

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I-45 again

Posted on November 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I went to the open house for I-45 on Tuesday night to see what was going on, since we didn’t have much information about what the current state of TxDOT’s thinking is about this. Apparently, there isn’t a set plan … Continue reading →

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I-45 is back on the agenda

Posted on November 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: After several years of the I-45 project being on hold, public meetings are now being scheduled by TxDOT. TxDOT is about to significantly change the I-45 project TxDOT has provided NO advance information on exactly what the … Continue reading →

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Where the congestion is

Posted on September 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the On The Move blog: Dallas motorists suffer the most highly congested road conditions in Texas, says a recent report from the Texas Department of Transportation. The state’s top three bottlenecks are all located in Dallas County, according to … Continue reading →

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HuffPo on the Grand Parkway

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Huffington Post take a look at that great boondoggle in northwest Harris County, the Grand Parkway Segment E extension from I-10 to 290. Texas faces a transportation funding gap of $315 billion over the next 20 years, according to … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed to stop Grand Parkway

Posted on August 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see how it goes. The Sierra Club has filed a lawsuit to block construction of the Grand Parkway in west Harris County until federal and state officials conduct a new analysis of the flooding consequences. The environmental group says … Continue reading →

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Hardy Toll Road extension gets final OK

Posted on August 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

After many years of planning, a project to extend the Hardy Toll Road all the way into downtown is finally headed to the drawing board. The Harris County Toll Road Authority is seeking the court’s permission to begin final negotiations … Continue reading →

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Don’t forget Texas’ debt

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Now that Perry’s Prayerpalooza is behind us and we breathlessly await his Presidential decision, keep this op-ed by former State Rep. Jim Dunnam in mind whenever you hear Perry pontificate about the national debt. Before Rick Perry became governor, Texas … Continue reading →

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Texas accepts grant for high speed rail study

Posted on July 19, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Awesome. Texas accepted a $15 million grant from the Federal High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program to fund the preliminary engineering and NEPA studies for the Dallas to Houston corridor. This money was made available by Wisconsin, Ohio and Florida’s … Continue reading →

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Grand Parkway news

Posted on July 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From Houston Tomorrow: The Sierra Club lawsuit to stop construction of the proposed SH99 toll road over the Katy Prairie will see its day in court by September,according to KUHF. The Sierra Club filed suit against “the Federal Highway Administration … Continue reading →

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Who wants to help build the Grand Parkway?

Posted on July 6, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The State of Texas wants to know. The Texas Department of Transportation, which has responsibility for the parkway in Harris, Montgomery and Chambers Counties, is moving toward use of a public-private partnership to get faster funding for the multibillion-dollar, 184-mile … Continue reading →

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Grand Parkway protest

Posted on May 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Misplaced priorities: $4.8 billion to advance SH-99 while US-290 commuters sit in traffic Coalition to protest Grand Parkway as poster child of all that’s wrong with Texas transportation policy (Houston, TX) – As TxDOT hosts the final … Continue reading →

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How would you spend $350 million of TxDOT’s money?

Posted on May 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

David Crossley would like to know. Let’s say you found $350 million to do a great transportation project for the Houston region. Would you use it to build a 400-foot-wide, 15-mile-long segment of brand-new highway across the Katy Prairie wetlands … Continue reading →

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TxDOT gets more high speed rail money

Posted on May 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Still not much, but every little bit counts. The Texas Department of Transportation will receive $15 million to begin engineering and environmental work on a high-speed rail link between Houston and Dallas, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced [last week]. … Continue reading →

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I can’t drive 75

Posted on April 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

If the Lege has its way, in addition to being able to drive 85 on the Interstates, you will also be able to drive 75 on some other highways. Legislation that would eliminate lower nighttime speed limits in Texas, allow … Continue reading →

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Texas asks for some of Florida’s rejected high speed rail funds

Posted on April 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is hoping to snag a portion of Florida’s unwanted high-speed rail money. TxDOT, which submitted its application to the Federal Railroad Administration this week, is hoping to secure nearly $43 million of the … Continue reading →

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I can’t drive 85

Posted on April 11, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Start your engines, y’all. The Texas House approved a bill that would allow the speed limit on some highways to be raised to 85 mph, which would be the highest in the nation. The measure passed Wednesday on a voice … Continue reading →

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I-10 service road update

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From Ultimate Heights: Two of six planned detention ponds are under construction near Interstate 10 east of Patterson Street, along with new feeder roads between Shepherd and Taylor. Work on the project began in October, with the first two detention … Continue reading →

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By the way, we have no money for roads

Posted on March 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Just another issue we won’t be dealing with this session. During the next 20 years, the Texas Department of Transportation will need $315 billion to spend on the state’s roads and freeways for maintenance and construction just to keep traffic … Continue reading →

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TxDOT gets Grand Parkway approval

Posted on March 1, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Another step in the march of the inevitable. The state Transportation Commission on Thursday granted the Texas Department of Transportation authority to begin design work and negotiating contracts to build a key segment of the Grand Parkway. The unanimous vote … Continue reading →

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Texas lags on rail: Film at 11

Posted on February 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I’m pretty sure we’ve seen this story before, but here it is again anyway. According to a study commissioned by the Texas Transportation Commission, during the next 20 years, more than $300 billion in 2009 dollars needs to be invested … Continue reading →

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