Transportation Updates[/caption]

1. Friendswood Link Road widening

Friendswood Link Road widening[/caption] Construction on the widening of Friendswood Link Road from FM 518 to Blackhawk Boulevard is ongoing. The approximately 1-mile project received funding from a Texas General Land Office disaster recovery grant in the wake of Hurricane Ike in 2008. The expansion project is expected to improve emergency evacuation routes out of Friendswood. The thoroughfare will be expanded from two to three lanes with a dedicated turn lane in the Galveston County portion of the project: FM 518 to Hibiscus Lane. On the Harris County side of Friendswood Link Road—Hibiscus Lane to Blackhawk Boulevard—the road will be widened from two to four lanes with medians. New sidewalks and an improved drainage system are also included throughout the length of the project. The project entered its final phase Feb. 1 when the new portion of the roadway from FM 518 to the Clear Creek bridge opened to traffic, city of Friendswood officials said. The project is about 79 percent complete and is expected to be complete this summer barring weather or other delays, officials said. Timeline: fall 2014-summer 2016 Cost: $5.3 million Funding sources: Texas General Land Office grant, city of Friendswood Kirby Drive widening[/caption]

2. Kirby Drive widening

The city of Pearland project to widen Kirby Drive is complete. The thoroughfare was opened to traffic in early December. The project, which began in May, expanded Kirby Drive from two to four lanes with raised medians from south of FM 518 to CR 59. The project is expected to increase mobility and safety around the Pearland Town Center area, where Alvin ISD will open Shadow Creek High School in August. The project also included new sidewalks and drainage improvements. Northbound traffic on Kirby Drive has a left-turn lane, and a deceleration lane was installed at the school’s entrance. Timeline: May 2015-December 2015 Cost: $2.9 million Funding source: city of Pearland

3. Bailey Road widening

Installation of a new drainage system on the south side of Bailey Road is nearing completion. Construction is expected to affect traffic until March 8, according to city of Pearland officials. One of the thoroughfare’s lanes will be closed intermittently between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. However, officials said the project should not interfere with access to properties and businesses in the area. The improved drainage system is part of a Pearland project to widen Bailey Road. In an effort to ease east-west traffic congestion in the city, the thoroughfare will expand from two to four lanes. A 10-foot-wide mixed-use path for pedestrians and cyclists will be installed on the north side of Bailey Road. The project received funding as part of Houston-Galveston Area Council’s Transportation Improvement Program. Timeline: September 2015-September 2017 Cost: $21.3 million Funding sources: H-GAC, city of Pearland

4. Friendswood roadway improvements

A preconstruction meeting will take place at the end of February for the project to repair four thoroughfares in Friendswood. City Council unanimously approved a construction contract with El Dorado Paving Company on Dec. 7. Work on the project—which groups the four roads together—is expected to begin March 7. Mary Ann Drive, Shadowbend Avenue, Townes and Winding roads will each have portions of roadway replaced. Shadowbend Avenue and Winding Road will be the first streets for construction. Voters approved the repair projects as part of a 2013 bond referendum. The project is expected to be complete within 300 days of its start date, officials said. 4A. Mary Ann Drive will have 16,001 feet of its roadway replaced. 4B. Shadowbend Avenue will have 1,224 feet of its roadway replaced. 4C. Townes Road will have 786 feet of its roadway replaced. 4D. Winding Road will have 2,133 feet of its roadway replaced. Timeline: March 2015-first quarter 2017 Cost: $2.5 million Funding sources: city of Friendswood, Texas Department of Transportation