Two-minute impact
As Montgomery County commissioners prepare to seek a road bond for the first time in 10 years, Riley went before township board members to present a project that would add two additional lanes to Kuykendahl Road between FM 1488 and Research Forest Drive.
According to details provided by Riley at the meeting, the expansion would include:
- An increase from two to four lanes
- Adding traffic signals to Kendall Green Drive
- Turn lane improvements
Riley said if the bond election is called and receives voter support, the project will likely take several years for construction to get underway due to the need to first complete engineering and design on the widening. However, Riley said he has budgeted $8 million towards the project in his portion of the bond planning process. Township board member Shelley Sekula-Gibbs said her main concern was managing speeding along the roadway and ensuring there would still be natural barriers such as trees to block out noise pollution to residential areas.
In their words
"I've always believed that safety of our students, families, and of course, operations are paramount, and we've always embraced that as a board, so I appreciate this," board member Ann Snyder said.
"[George P. Mitchell Intermediate] has gone from a neighborhood school now to what I consider a school on an interstate for safety purposes," said Paula Klapesky, principal at George P. Mitchell Intermediate School, during the Jan. 22 meeting. "I'd just like you to consider the safety of our children in our schools now, and I've seen the substantial growth over that time with almost 1,300 children in our school."
"We've got our own traffic counts that we've done our own drones ... we're trying to figure out how we can get people in and out of school safer, and getting them in and out of those intersections safer," Riley said.
What else?
Sekula-Gibbs also requested a meeting with Riley to discuss the potential of a series of intersection and road improvements on major thoroughfares which surround The Woodlands such as FM 1488, FM 2978, the Grand Parkway and I-45. Sekula-Gibbs said the idea would be to create a "loop" around the township using existing roadways to help mitigate pass-through traffic in the area. However, Riley requested additional information from the township regarding the potential design and needs of the project.
Montgomery County commissioners will discuss the future of a 2025 road bond during their meeting on Jan. 28 at 501 N. Thompson St., Conroe. The meeting will also be livestreamed through the county's website.
