Improvements to Rayford Road are in progress as project design and engineering begin. Right of way acquisition is expected to start this year, according to Montgomery County Precinct 3 officials.
The highly congested road was listed as the top project for Precinct 3 when the Montgomery County road bond passed in November. In the areas around Rayford Road, the bond passed with an average of 80 percent support.
According to Precinct 3 officials, the $60 million Rayford Road project limits are from Richard Road to the Grand Parkway. Improvements include widening Rayford Road from four to six lanes, building a six-lane bridge to bypass the Union Pacific Railroad, installing new traffic signals and street signage and building a raised median to enhance safety for motorists turning left.
Precinct 3 project manager Matt Beasley said with 46,000 vehicles going over the railroad tracks on Rayford Road every day, the improvements are needed. According to the Houston-Galveston Area Council’s mobility study, there were 879 recorded accidents on Rayford Road from 2007-13.
“We’re going to add capacity to the roadway and make it safer by managing the turn lanes,” Beasley said. “Now, we’re going over the engineering design and construction and managing the right of way acquisition.”
Beasley said the future improvements will ease mobility for residents stuck in congestion during peak times of the day. Construction is expected to begin in early 2017 and end in 2019. To help residents become more informed about the project, Beasley said residents can attend a public meeting that will be held sometime in March or April as well as subscribe to [email protected].
Paul Cote, a resident of the Rayford Road corridor for the past 20 years, said many residents would like to become more informed on the status of Rayford Road and get improvements details.
“So far there’s no data showing how much Rayford Road will be affected by the improvements,” Cote said. “I think the fastest way to reduce [congestion] on Rayford Road and I-45 is to open a north and south road that goes out of the Rayford Road area. It would provide relief.”
Cote said he believes the main reason there is so much congestion on Rayford Road is the lack of improvements at I-45 and Rayford, and that widening the road will not improve travel time.
Residents who want an opportunity to review maps and visit with Rayford Road project team members to ask questions and share comments can attend the upcoming public meeting held by Precinct 3. A second public meeting will be held before construction starts to share phasing and traffic control information along with a detailed construction schedule.
