Katy Edition | February 2023

TRANSPORTATION UPDATES Westpark Tollway extension design nears completion The Westpark Tollway, a major east-west thoroughfare in the

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ONGOING PROJECTS

Associates, said the project is in the design phase with plans for comple- tion in the summer. Designing the extension will cost $7 million, Smith said. A project cost estimate and construction timeline have not been made yet. Fulshear Assistant City Manager Zach Goodlander said most develop- ment in the Fulshear area is happen- ing north of FM 1093, which directly connects to Westpark Tollway. He said this makes the extension a key component to the area’s mobility in the coming years. “A great percentage of our residents do commute to work into Houston, so the Tollway will provide better mobility for them to

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Fulshear and southwest Katy area that leads into FM 1093, is being extended from FM 723 to the Texas Heritage Parkway. This work is being completed by the Fort Bend County Toll Road Authority. Texas Heritage Parkway—a 6.4- mile, four-lane roadway spanning from I-10 to just south of FM 1093— runs alongside various develop- ments, such as Cross Creek Ranch and Tamarron. FM 723 runs north and south and crosses Westpark Tollway near Westheimer Lakes. Phillip Smith, engineer with the Fort Bend County Toll Road Authori- ty’s contracted company Mike Stone

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Greenbusch Road widening Greenbusch Road is being widened from two to four lanes with a bridge between Gaston Road and Westheimer Parkway. The bridge has been com- pleted, allowing work on the road to begin, said Ike Akinwande, Fort Bend County’s assistant engineer. Timeline: March 2022-October 2023 Cost: $7.4 million Funding source: 2013 Fort Bend County mobility bond

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and from work,” Goodlander said. “As the Tollway authority moves into design, it will be very important that the community’s interests are considered, from the schematics of the design to the aesthetics.”

UPCOMING PROJECTS

METRO to add bike sharing to countywide transit system In an eort to address rst- and last-mile a maximum of around 1,000 bikes throughout

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ALL INFORMATION ON THIS PAGE WAS UPDATED AS OF FEB. 17. NEWS OR QUESTIONS ABOUT THESE OR OTHER LOCAL TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS? EMAIL US AT KTYNEWSCOMMUNITYIMPACT.COM. METRORapid Inner Katy Corridor The Federal Transit Administration ap- proved the categorical exclusion for the METRORapid Inner Katy Corridor proj- ect, Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County ocials said at a Jan. 26 meeting. This means the project will have little environmental impact, so it does not need a full environmental im- pact evaluation. The Inner Katy project would add transit stations along I-10 and in downtown Houston. Timeline: TBD Cost: TBD Funding source: Houston-Galveston Area Council

connectivity to its system, the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County will take over the operation of Houston BCycle, Houston’s only bike-sharing program. The METRO board voted to commence the bike-shar- ing initiative during its Jan. 26 meeting. Houston BCycle, operated by Houston Bike Share, a nonprot organization, brought bike sharing to the region in 2012. The system at its peak included

approximately 150 stations and over 2,100 bike docks. Around 90% of its users do so for recreation rather than transportation. Houston Bike Share made the decision to suspend 75 of its 150 stations Jan. 1 due to nancial concerns. It then approached METRO with an opportunity to add bike sharing to its transit system. METRO has previ- ously marketed Houston BCycle as a rst- and last- mile transit alternative. The agency will now

METRO will develop a six- to nine-month transition plan to take over the footprint of Houston BCycle. (Courtesy Houston BCycle)

work with Houston Bike Share on developing a six- to nine-month transition plan with the objective of adapting the existing bike-sharing footprint to complement METRO’s transit system, METRO

Chief Financial Ocer George Fotinos said. “Connecting bicycles to METRO’s transit system has been identied as one of the key strategies to grow local ridership and build use of the system,” he said.

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KATY EDITION • FEBRUARY 2023