Portions of I-45 widening near League City set to finish this year

The Texas Department of Transportation will continue widening I-45 between NASA Parkway and the Texas City Wye this year, an effort that was broken into five projects totaling about $720 million.

Two segments near League City will finish this year but have a later timeline than TxDOT estimated this fall. TxDOT Public Information Officer Danny Perez said via email this is due to material shortages and inclement weather; however, he said the projects are still within the contract time and are not delayed.

The NASA Parkway to FM 518 project is set to finish in late 2022 instead of mid-2022, as TxDOT officials estimated last fall. The $99.2 million project will widen the main lanes from six to 10 lanes, including a high-occupancy vehicle lane in both directions, as well as lengthening the northbound and southbound frontage road bridges over Clear Creek.

Additionally, the segment between FM 518 to FM 517 is set to finish this summer instead of early 2022. Perez said the ongoing projects will likely affect commuters and local residents, but community members can get closure information on TxDOT’s social media pages and at www.houstontranstar.org.

“We understand that road work can impact communities, and we always work to minimize those impacts,” he said. “We sincerely appreciate the public’s patience and thank them for working with us during construction.”

League City City Manager John Baumgartner said in an emailed statement that city officials are excited for construction to finish.

“The completion of the I-45 widening project is really going to make big difference when it comes to congestion in and around League City,” he said. “We are excited about this phase of the project wrapping up in our area and can see a light at the end of tunnel.”

Construction on the other three I-45 widening projects—FM 517 to FM 1764, FM 1764 to FM 519 and FM 519 to the Texas City Wye—will last until at least 2026, TxDOT officials previously said.