From the cover
Roadway plans adapt to regional growth
BY ATIRIKTA KUMAR
The big picture
1
MOSTYN DR.
1488
2
3
242
As several TxDOT projects move toward completion to improve mobility and safety on FM 1488 and Hwy. 242, another set of projects is beginning to take shape through Montgomery County bond funds. TxDOT began work on a project to build raised medians along FM 1488 in 2023. The goal was to improve safety by reducing access points along about 9 miles of the state road. It was 87% complete in late November, said Leo Flores, public information o cer for TxDOT Houston District’s West Harris/Montgomery area. Crashes related to left-turn movements along the FM 1488 corridor were identi ed as an issue in a 2019 study, Flores told Community Impact . “The raised medians included in this project are designed to address those safety concerns and help reduce these types of accidents,” he said. Another TxDOT project underway that uses existing right of way on Hwy. 242 to widen lanes, add turn lanes and reduce congestion is slated to be completed early in the year. As these projects wrap up, several projects further west will begin under Montgomery County Precinct 2’s jurisdiction. Those projects will use some of the $31 million in bond money allocated to the precinct from the $480 million May road bond to improve mobility on roads feeding onto FM 1488 and FM 2978.
LAKE WOODLANDS DR.
SPUR 149 RD.
WOODTRACE BLVD.
RESEARCH FOREST DR.
45
249
4
DOBBIN HUFSMITH RD.
GROGANS MILL RD.
The Woodlands Township
2978
99 TOLL
N
TxDOT projects
Montgomery County Precinct 2 projects
1 FM 1488 The project adds raised medians from Mostyn Drive to The Woodlands area between FM 2978 and I-45. • Cost: $10.96 million • Timeline: Completion is set for the second quarter of 2026. 2 Hwy. 242 The project uses existing right of way to widen and add turn lanes between FM 1488 and I-45. • Cost: $29.11 million • Timeline: Completion is set for January.
3 Kuykendahl Road The project will widen the road to four lanes, add turn lanes and tra c signals. • Cost: TBD • Timeline: Clearing was underway in November. 4 Woodtrace Boulevard The project will build out an extension of Woodtrace Boulevard from Dobbin-Hufsmith Road to FM 2978. • Cost: TBD • Timeline: The project was out to bid in November.
SOURCES: TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, MONTGOMERY COUNTY PRECINCT 2 COMMUNITY IMPACT
Tra c counts FM 1488 near I-45
Measuring the impact
What’s next
51,000
50,563
49,500
48,952
60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000
43,759
Rob Eissler, executive director of the Westwood Magnolia Parkway Improvement District, which will manage maintainence of the landscaping on the new FM 1488 medians, said the improvements could help reduce speeds on the corridor. “If there’s any detriment, you don’t have as many access points for the businesses,” he said. WMPID uses a portion of a designated 1% from sales tax revenues within its boundaries to support infrastructure projects. “We’re trying to help bring the tone down to make it … less of a racetrack,” he said. Kolton Coats, the general manager at The Adventure Begins, a comic book store on FM 1488, said he does not think the changes to the road will be a long-term issue. “As the construction has moved further past our front door we are noticing less accidents outside the shop, and most of the initial issues ... have been adjusted to and accounted for,” Coats said.
The Woodlands Township is working with TxDOT to design landscaping on Hwy. 242 and portions of FM 1488. “Our goal is to support TxDOT in building a road that is more harmonious with other tree-lined and landscaped roads in the township,” said Shelley Sekula-Gibbs, a resident and member of the township’s board of directors. Precinct 2 Commissioner Charlie Riley said the timeline for his projects, such as adding a lane to Kuykendahl Road as it approaches FM 1488, remains unclear since the county has to work with railroad crossings and utilities in the area. Precinct 2 will also complete a Woodtrace Boulevard extension to FM 2978. “We need more roads that go east and west in the county,” Eissler said.
0
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
FM 1488 near Kuykendahl Road
13,119
13,000
12,975
11,500
10,813
15,000 10,000 5,000
0
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Hwy. 242 near FM 1488
22,707
22,046
19,071
25,000 20,000 15,000 10,000 5,000
16,922
16,020
0
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
SOURCE: TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION COMMUNITY IMPACT
36
COMMUNITYIMPACT.COM
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