The Texas Department of Transportation sent Montgomery County Precinct 3 Commissioner James Noack a letter expressing the department’s support for a project to improve the ramps on I-45 between The Woodlands Parkway and the Hardy Toll Road. The commissioners considered and accepted the letter during their July 25 meeting.
“TxDOT is very interested in this project and appreciates that the county is investing local funds to advance the feasibility study of the proposed improvements,” said Sue Theiss, TxDOT’s director of advanced project development, in the letter.
Zooming out
During its May 23 meeting, the Montgomery County Commissioners Court approved funding to begin the preliminary study for the improvements.
According to previous reporting, improvements would include:
- Revising the northbound and south ramps on I-45
- Elevating the Hardy Toll Road entrance and exit ramps over the Rayford/Sawdust exit
- Potentially improving safety and reducing delays on I-45
- Not changing the Grand Parkway ramp
What else?
- The county made an initial investment of $980,000 to begin the first study on the improvements, making a motion to use pass-through funding or interest paid through the last road bond, according to previous Community Impact reporting.
- TxDOT is providing Montgomery County with Project Manager Robel Sintayehu to work with during the feasibility study phase, according to the department’s letter.
“Before we started spending money, we wanted something from TxDOT saying, ‘Hey, we like this,’” Noack said during the July 25 Commissioners Court meeting.
Stay tuned
The study will last around four months and include surveying, traffic data collection and utility investigations, according to prior reporting. That study will need to be done before TxDOT can conduct traffic analysis and begin the design phase.
View the letter from TxDOT below.
