Tag Archives: Stop I-45

Of course the I-45 project will cost more than expected

Posted on September 13, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Same as it ever was. The first major road work set for downtown Houston related to the $11.2 billion-plus rebuild of the freeway core and Interstate 45 remains on track for next year, but at a cost of $80 million … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

I-45 construction set to begin

Posted on June 13, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Ready or not, here it comes. Houston’s largest-ever freeway project is one step closer to starting construction, with crews poised to begin digging in the dirt along Interstate 69 by fall. After years of planning and sometimes fiery debate, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Hardy Toll Road connector approved

Posted on March 29, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a very different project than what was first proposed. A planned extension of the Hardy Toll Road through the Near Northside into downtown Houston will proceed, but with various community-driven design elements. Harris County Commissioners on Tuesday approved a … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Hardy Toll Road Connector is back

Posted on March 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This has been in the works for a long time. The plan for the Hardy-Downtown Connector began in earnest in 2003, but the project stalled for many years due to budget concerns. The basic plan is a four-lane highway that … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The I-45 project will be old enough to vote before it is finished

Posted on May 6, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Isn’t that nice? Often called a once-in-a-generation project, the planned $9.7 billion-plus rebuild of I-45 from downtown Houston north to Beltway 8, including a total reconstruction of the downtown freeway system, is expected to take a generation to build. A … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

I-45 project is back on

Posted on March 8, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Though it will still be several years before there is any real construction. Nearly two years to the day that federal officials paused TxDOT’s plans for rebuilding Interstate 45 and downtown Houston’s freeway system, national and state highway leaders have come … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on I-45 project is back on

If not for I-45 then for something else

Posted on March 5, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Money for highways never goes unspent. Drivers on Houston freeways likely can relate: Facing a slowdown when it comes to rebuilding Interstate 45, state transportation leaders are shifting gears and changing lanes. Unable to significantly move ahead with the controversial … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on If not for I-45 then for something else

So what’s the deal with that I-45 deal?

Posted on January 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Still to be determined. Houston, Harris County and the Texas Department of Transportation have an agreed path forward for rebuilding Interstate 45, and a lot of steps to get there. Details big and small remain works in progress and a … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on So what’s the deal with that I-45 deal?

Agreement reached on I-45 expansion plans

Posted on December 20, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I remain skeptical, but we’ll see. The bottleneck of design differences that has divided officials about remaking Interstate 45 north of downtown Houston is easing, officials said Monday, clearing the way for construction on the $10 billion project, perhaps in … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Is this enough lipstick for the I-45 project?

Posted on September 26, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

You decide. A downtown economic development group hopes proposed “green” and multimodal amenities will make the controversial I-45 expansion plan more palatable for the project’s critics. The multi-billion-dollar plan by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to widen and reroute … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Unifying the opposition to massive urban highway projects

Posted on September 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good idea, ought to have some effect, but changing the overall culture and philosophy about transportation in Texas is a very big lift. Opponents of some of Texas’ largest transportation projects are unifying their messaging, pushing state highway officials to … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Unifying the opposition to massive urban highway projects

TxDOT sued over its enviromental impact assessments

Posted on July 31, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting. After college, Michael Moritz got a job in Houston analyzing fatal car crashes. Moritz, a 27-year-old native of San Antonio, stood on Interstate Highway 45, one of the most dangerous stretches of highway in the country, and documented … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on TxDOT sued over its enviromental impact assessments

Rules that can’t be enforced are just suggestions

Posted on April 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is ridiculous. Sugar Land Mayor Joe Zimmerman’s dual roles as a member of the Houston region’s transportation planning board and consultant at an engineering company will not receive further scrutiny by the local board after staff concluded the panel … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Rules that can’t be enforced are just suggestions

The hotly contested SD15 primary

Posted on February 27, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This may be the most compelling primary race in the county. On the last day for candidates to file for the 2022 primary in Texas, things were looking good for state Sen. John Whitmire. The longtime Democrat, sitting on an … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2022 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The hotly contested SD15 primary

Federal complaint filed over I-45 project

Posted on December 21, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Missed this in the barrage of news from the last few days. Critics of the plan to remake Interstate 45 north of downtown Houston filed a nearly 100-page complaint to federal officials Thursday, urging even greater scrutiny of the project’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Some I-45 work to resume

Posted on December 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Just some design work, for now. Federal officials have lifted their pause on a small piece of the planned Interstate 45 mega-project that will remake downtown Houston’s freeway system and has divided state transportation planners, community groups and local politicians. … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Some I-45 work to resume

Harris County to pause the I-45 lawsuit

Posted on November 16, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Gonna give talking a try. You never know. Harris County will pause its lawsuit against the Texas Department of Transportation over the proposed Interstate 45 widening in hopes that it leads to a consensus that has eluded them for more … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

I-45 remains in the funding plan

Posted on September 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

For now. Ask again in 90 days. Interstate 45 still is on a road to rebuild after Texas transportation officials on Tuesday kept the controversial project in the state’s 10-year construction plans, but warned that failing to get federal highway … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Will TxDOT pull funding from the I-45 project?

Posted on August 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

It could happen. Supporters of state plans to rebuild Interstate 45 from downtown Houston northward trekked to Austin on Thursday to keep the imperiled project on pace, fearing the region could be stuck with an aging freeway and no sign … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Will TxDOT pull funding from the I-45 project?

The I-45 survey

Posted on July 28, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Who thought this was a good idea? The fate of the massive $9 billion project may depend on how many people who agree with Smith or agree with Davies fill out an online poll — after 15 years of planning, … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Back to the public input phase for I-45

Posted on July 7, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

They hear, but will they listen? Hemmed between a request for a pause by federal highway officials and an outcry from opponents, planners of a massive rebuild of Interstate 45 in Houston are taking their plans back to the public … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Back to the public input phase for I-45

Feds tell TxDOT to slow down on I-45

Posted on June 25, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

On pause for however long. In two letters released Wednesday — one to the Texas Department of Transportation and another to Harris County leaders — the Federal Highway Administration said it expected Texas officials to halt work [on I-45], including … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

There’s a real lack of consensus about the I-45 project

Posted on February 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

It seems unlikely that TxDOT could just throw up its hands and walk away from this, but it’s at least a possible scenario. A proposed agreement devised to bring planners and critics of a massive redesign of Interstate 45 together … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The next phase of the I-45 fight is about to begin

Posted on December 8, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Where it goes from here is still up in the air. The opening of this story was at a rally on Sunday that opposed the current I-45 plan. The rally, part of a flurry of events from concerts to block-walking … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments