Pearland enters agreement with Brazoria County to fund traffic signal improvements

Pearland City Council voted unanimously at its May 18 meeting to enter an interlocal agreement with the Brazoria County Toll Road Authority to fund traffic signals at Hugh Ranch Road and Smith Ranch Road and Hwy. 288.

The details

Per the agreement, Pearland will recover a substantial portion of the maintenance and operating costs from BCTRA, which will pay all of the maintenance costs for the SH 288 Toll Road T-Ramp signal, according to city documents.

For the second signal, costs will be split, with the city paying 75% and BCTRA paying 25%. BCTRA will also handle the costs of electrical service and software updates.

Why it matters

By bringing the BCTRA-owned signals under the Pearland's operational control, the city will be able to sync their timing with other local traffic signals, according to city documents.

Under the new arrangement, the city will provide a 24-hour response to any signal issues at these intersections to ensure traffic isn't adversely affected and conduct semi-annual preventive maintenance, according to city documents.

Looking ahead

The city will submit an invoice to BCTRA at the end of each fiscal year to cover the county’s shared portion of the maintenance and repair costs, according to city documents.