The Harris County Toll Road Authority is revisiting plans to extend the north section of Fort Bend Parkway to connect to the southwest corner Loop 610.
When it was completed in 2004, the Fort Bend Parkway Toll Road connected Sienna Parkway in Missouri City to Hwy. 90 as a joint effort between the HCTRA and the Fort Bend County Toll Road Authority. About 13,800 cars use the toll road each day, according to Texas Department of Transportation traffic data.
“The engineer is collecting current traffic data to reassess the original 2003 schematic development to determine benefits and impacts to the area,” said Roxy Sibrian, a member of the HCTRA communications team. “The development process of the schematic is expected to be complete early 2020.”
According to a HCTRA financial statement, the county purchased land for the project in 2005 for $3.86 million. In February 2018, Harris County Commissioners Court approved an $870,000 contract with Brown & Gay Engineers Inc. to evaluate plans for the extension.
The HCTRA plans to hold public input meetings to obtain community feedback in the future, Sibrian said.
A proposed route for the extension would bring the tollway through the Willow Waterhole detention site, which has drawn concern from the Willow Waterhole Greenspace Conservancy.
“The WWGC is very concerned about the impact of the toll road on the Greenway’s amenities and activities. We look forward to meeting to discuss this further,” WWGC former President Howard Sacks wrote in a letter to the toll road authority shared with Community Impact Newspaper.
OTHER UPDATES TO FOLLOW:
Independence Boulevard Segment 2 reconstruction
Reconstruction of Independence Boulevard began Nov. 25. There will be alternating lane closures from Moore Road to South Revolution Way running through summer 2020. The project will convert the existing two-lane concrete roadway into a four-lane, concrete curb-and-gutter road.
Timeline: November 2019-summer 2020
Cost: $2.5 million
Funding sources: city of Missouri City, Fort Bend County
Dairy Ashford Road widening
Construction is 90% complete on the project to add additional through lanes on Dairy Ashford from Parklane Boulevard to just past Julie Rivers Drive. Additional turn lanes will also be constructed at Hwy. 90A.
Sugar Land officials estimated the project will be completed by the end of February. Drivers can expect lane closures during construction.
Timeline: July 2018-February 2020
Cost: $4.73 million (construction)
Funding sources: city of Sugar Land, Fort Bend County
Muirwood Lane partial closing
Residents living on Muirwood Lane in Sugar Land will experience construction on their street through May 2020. The drainage improvements and street and sidewalk reconstruction on Muirwood Lane are a part of larger drainage and street projects in the area.
Sugar Land city officials said Muirwood Lane will have at least one lane open to traffic throughout construction, but homeowners will have limited access to driveways and garages, especially during sidewalk reconstruction.
Timeline: November 2019-May 2020
Cost: $3.95 million (Sugar Mill drainage improvements and Seventh Street-area reconstruction)
Funding sources: city of Sugar Land
