Katy Edition | March 2023

TRANSPORTATION UPDATES Cities recognized as mobility hubs in TxDOT study

COMPILED BY ASIA ARMOUR & RENEE FARMER

In the next year, the cities of Katy, Brookshire and Pattison will be the subject for a Texas Department of Transportation mobility study. The study will actualize the agency’s Regional Express Access Lane—or REAL—concept, identify transporta- tion improvements, evaluate trends, and develop a list of strategies for short-, medium- and long-term projects in the area. The suggested improvements—such as vehicle eligibility-based roadways with an uninterrupted ow of people and goods—will address safety, mobility, resiliency and accessibility, said Emily Black, public information ocer for the TxDOT Houston District, in an email. The study will conclude in the rst quarter of 2024, she wrote in an email. The REAL plan aims to provide more mobility options than getting around by car, keeping in mind disadvantaged communities who rely on public

The Katy Brookshire mobility study area includes clusters of residential and employment activity centers and freight centers located in the western section of the Texas Department of Transportation Houston District’s service area. STUDY AREA

TxDOT identied mobility hubs Areas incorporated in study

Study boundary

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President and CEO Tom Lambert has spent 45 years with METRO in various roles. (Courtesy METRO)

PATTISON BROOKSHIRE

ALL INFORMATION ON THIS PAGE WAS UPDATED AS OF MARCH 14. NEWS OR QUESTIONS ABOUT THESE OR OTHER LOCAL TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS? EMAIL US AT KTYNEWSCOMMUNITYIMPACT.COM. more time with his family,” METRO Board Chair Sanjay Ramabhadran said in the release. “I have been blessed to have worked with talented sta, a dedicated board and a wonderful community of part- ners to provide outstanding multi- modal transit options to this region,” Lambert said in the release. “But after nearly 45 years at METRO, now is the right time to retire.” Lambert joined METRO in its rst full year of operation in 1979 and later be- came the METRO Police Department’s rst chief of police. He has also served as the agency’s chief administrative ocer and executive vice president. “METRO and the region have benet- ed tremendously from Tom’s leader- ship and service. I certainly under- stand his desire to close out his very successful career at METRO and spend METRO president, CEO announces December retirement After 45 years working for the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, President and CEO Tom Lambert has announced plans to retire from the agency at the end of 2023. Lambert stepped into his current role in 2013, making him METRO’s longest-serving president and CEO. He will continue with the agency until Dec. 31, according to a Feb. 2 news release.

SOURCE: TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATIONCOMMUNITY IMPACT

transit. The ongoing plan will spur eco- nomic development, improve travel times and enhance transit reliability throughout the region for both people and freight movement, Black said. The Katy Brookshire mobility study area includes clusters of residential, employment, and freight centers in the western section of TxDOT Houston District’s service area, Black said.

This area is experiencing residential and commercial growth, including warehouses and distribution centers along I-10 and Hwy. 90 between Brookshire and Katy. The study will consider integrating other TxDOT works in the area, such as a project to widen Hwy. 90 to four lanes and a FM 2855 extension to I-10 to improve access to freight trac.

Houston taps county to comply with roadway, freeway plan At a Feb. 3 meeting, Fort Bend County relinquished an over 23-acre plat of land to the city of Houston for a project that will further the city’s major thoroughfare and freeway plan, or MTFP. The city aims to build “A large portion of Fort Bend County lies 10 KATY FWY. Houston will need 23.34 acres of land in Fort Bend County to construct a road thoroughfare. MOBILITY PLANNING Land acquired for road

within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the city of Houston,” Akinwande said in an email. “As such, the city, by state law, is able to extend their subdivision and [MTFP] requirements within this area outside their city limits.” The boulevard’s construction does not yet have a timeline, Houston

a boulevard through the acreage in Katy between I-10, Cane Island Parkway and Kingsland Boulevard, said Ike Akinwande, the county’s assistant engineer.

SOURCE: FORT BEND COUNTYCOMMUNITY IMPACT

Chief Transportation Planner David Fields said in an email. Akinwande said the project will

come at no cost to the county. The project will be discussed at a May 11 meeting.

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KATY EDITION • MARCH 2023