Conroe - Montgomery Edition | March 2023

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Three lane designs are under consideration for I-45 from Conroe to Houston. Depending on public feedback, portions of the freeway could undergo full reconstruction.

A NEW LOOK FOR I-45

KEY:

# Travel time on 24-mile segment from Beltway 8 to South Loop 336 Estimated crash average change based on crashes per 100 million vehicle miles traveled

Main lanes

Frontage roads

HOV lanes

Features: 1 HOV lane

52 minutes

Alternative 1

+9%

5 main lanes created using existing shoulder Frontage road unchanged

Features: 2 HOV lanes

43 minutes

Alternative 2

-13%

4-5 main lanes Frontage roads reconstructed

NEW LANES

Features: 2 HOV lanes, elevated 4 main lanes Frontage roads unchanged

32 minutes

Alternative 3

-14%

SOURCE: TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION/COMMUNITY IMPACT

end of the design phase, but TxDOT will need to approve the plan before construction begins. Safety concerns TxDOT officials said safety con- cerns are a major driver for the study. According to data collected by TxDOT, there were 16,581 total crashes on I-45 between South Loop 336 and Beltway 8 from 2017-21. Of those crashes, 339 were fatal or inca- pacitating, and 3,962 involved some kind of serious injury. Montgomery County Sheriff Rand Henderson said in an interview the sheriff’s office recorded 997 accidents on I-45, including one fatality, in 2022. “Traffic congestion is one of the most frequently contributing factors to aggressive driving,” he said in an email. Henderson said he has offered his support and knowledge concern- ing mobility to Montgomery County Commissioners Court and is regularly in contact with TxDOT to conduct traffic surveys to better assist with the expansion and safety of I-45. Alleviating congestion Increasing travel times have also been an issue along the corridor.

The I-45 segment between Lake Front Circle and Spring Cypress Road, located south of The Woodlands, ranked 98 out of 100 in the Texas A&M Transportation Institute’s 2022 ranking of Texas’ most congested roadways. The congestion caused 115,324 hours of delay per mile in 2022 for this segment of I-45. The portion of I-45 between North Loop 336 West and FM 1488, and the section of the highway between FM 1097 and South Loop 336 were further down on the congestion list, ranking at 679 and 1,728, respectively. Together, the two sections caused a total of 30,590 hours of delay per mile on I-45 in 2022. Debby Mormino, a 15-year resident of Conroe, said she has watched traf- fic on I-45 area roadways get worse over the years. “The traffic on South [Loop] 336 has gotten really bad,” she said in a Next- door thread. “With all the expansion and growth in this area the last few years, the roads have not kept up.” The baseline freeflow—which is how long it should take an average vehicle at 50-65 mph to travel the 24 miles within the study area on I-45—is 22 minutes, according to TxDOT. If no

improvements are made to I-45, the travel time for that same stretch of road is projected to be 52 minutes by 2045, according to the study. However, expanding new lanes or creating elevated HOV lanes is expected to reduce the peak travel times to 32-43 minutes, according to TxDOT data. Looking ahead As it stands, the proposed alternatives are in the study phase. The proposal is separate from the North Houston High- way Improvement Project, a $9 billion improvement plan for I-45 from down- town Houston to Beltway 8. The findings from the PEL Study are expected to be complete by the end of 2023. “TxDOT will select, with public input, a project or projects to be eval- uated, designed and built,” Black said. “This means we are years from any potential construction starting, so this was the best way to get a good idea of what would benefit the area as growth in the area continues to increase.”

Jerry Coker 713-224-3426 ¡Hablamos Español!

Jerry Coker 713-224-3426 ¡Hablamos Españo

Jerry Coker 713-224-3426 ¡Hablamos Español! Limitations apply. See geico.com for more details. GEICO & affiliates. 20076. GEICO Gecko image © 1999-2022. © 2022 GEICO. 21_63331212 Limitations apply. See geico.com for more details. DC 20076. GEICO Gecko image © 1999-2022. Jerry Coker 713-224-3426 ¡Hablamos Español! apply. See geico.com for more details. GEICO & affiliates. Washington 20076. GEICO Gecko image © 1999-2022. © 2022 GEICO. 21_633312129 Jerry Coker 713-224-3426 ¡Hablamos Español! See geico.com for more details. GEICO & affiliates. GEICO Gecko image © 1999-2022. © 2022 GEICO. Jerry Coker 713-224-3426 ¡Hablamos Español! apply. See geico.com for more details. GEICO & GEICO Gecko image © 1999-2022. © 2022 GEICO. Limitations apply. See geico.com for more details. GEICO & affiliates. Washington, DC 20076. GEICO Gecko image 1999- 2022. 2022 GEICO. 21_633312129 more details. GEICO & affiliates. Washington, 1999-2022. © 2022 GEICO. 21_633312129 more details. GEICO & affiliates. Washington, 1999-2022. © 2022 GEICO. 21_633312129

Jerry Coker 713-224-3426 ¡Hablamos Español! Coker 713-224-3426 ¡Hablamos Español!

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CONROE - MONTGOMERY EDITION • MARCH 2023