Karen Othon, Texas Department of Transportation public information officer, gave a presentation on Hwy. 290 at the June 3 North Houston Association meeting. Karen Othon, Texas Department of Transportation public information officer, gave a presentation on the progress of the Hwy. 290 expansion project at the June 3 North Houston Association meeting.[/caption]

Updated June 26 at 3:32 p.m.

The Texas Transportation Commission awarded the final major construction contract for the Hwy. 290 widening project to Williams Brothers Construction Co. June 25. Segment A, which spans 5 miles from Badtke Road to FM 2920, is expected to total $60 million and will widen the road from two lanes to three lanes in each direction. Construction is expected to begin in July and is scheduled to complete in late 2017.

Posted June 3 at 5:39 p.m.

While road work continues on the east side of Hwy. 290, construction on three of the remaining west side widening projects is expected to kick off in the coming months.

The Texas Department of Transportation announced June 2 Williams Brothers Construction Co. was awarded two construction contracts in May to widen Hwy. 290 segments B and C-2 from Badtke to Mason roads.

The $33 million widening of Segment B, which stretches 2.9 miles from Badtke to Bauer roads, is expected to begin construction this month and complete in 2017, said Karen Othon, Hwy. 290 TxDOT public information officer. In addition, the $37 million project to widen Segment C-2, which spans 3 miles from Bauer to Mason roads, will begin construction in September and wrap up in 2017 as well, Othon said.

The final portion of the Hwy. 290 project—Segment A from FM 2920 at the Waller County line to Badtke Road—is expected to cost $56 million and will be sent out for bid next week, Othon said. Construction on Segment A is expected to begin later this year once the contract is awarded by the end of this month, she said.

“Project C-2 was originally scheduled for letting in 2016, and projects B and A were set for 2017,” Othon said. “But thanks to Proposition 1 being approved, we were able to accelerate the construction schedule of those projects.”

Prop 1, which received 80 percent voter approval in November, has dedicated a portion of oil and gas tax revenue to the State Highway Fund. Since the passage of Prop 1, TxDOT has received millions of dollars to fund about 200 state mobility projects, including the addition of new highway lanes, bridge replacements, road widenings and other improvements.

Segment B is proposed to widen Hwy. 290 from the existing two lanes to three lanes in each direction with extra auxiliary lanes between on and off ramps, according to TxDOT plans.

Segment C-2 will widen Hwy. 290 from the existing three lanes to four lanes in each direction west of Mason Road up to the area near the Grand Parkway. Hwy. 290 will also be widened to four lanes on segments C-1 and D extending from Mason Road to just west of Hwy. 6.

“The ultimate vision for Hwy. 290 is reconstructing the corridor from I-610 to FM 2920,” Othon said. “That’s 38 miles and does include a portion of the I-610 north loop from Ella Boulevard to Hwy. 290 and a portion of the west loop from I-10 to Hwy. 290 all the way out to FM 2920. It’s $2.4 billion—that cost includes utilities, design, right of way [acquisition] and construction.”

An estimated 250,000 vehicles travel the Hwy. 290 corridor each day. The population along the corridor is projected to increase from 688,000 in 2015 to 964,000 by 2040 due to the growth and development happening in Harris County, Othon said.

For more information on the Hwy. 290 expansion project, visit www.my290.com.