In addition, the Hwy. 288 northbound entrance ramp from Magnolia Parkway also opened.
As of press time, only one lane of the frontage road is open. Once fully complete this fall, the frontage road will be three lanes from Magnolia to Broadway heading only northbound and include a U-turn lane under the Magnolia overpass to provide access to Hwy. 288 main lanes.
Pearland funded 100% of the design, construction and additional costs of the project while TxDOT handled the bidding and management, TxDOT public information officer Danny Perez told Community Impact Newspaper in an email.
The project was originally approved in 2015 by the Houston-Galveston Area Council Transportation Improvement Program, but it was not scheduled to go to bid until 2025, according to city documents. By accelerating the project, Pearland was able to cut costs below what H-GAC projected.
The construction of the frontage road began in October, and the project aimed to improve the access to surrounding businesses and residences, reduce congestion and reduce waiting times at adjacent intersections along Hwy. 288, according to the city of Pearland.
The construction contract was awarded for $4.9 million to SER Construction Partners, LLC, a firm based in the Greater Houston area, Perez said. TxDOT expects to be complete by late September or early October, he said. According to Pearland’s website, construction was estimated to be complete in February 2022.
