Construction crews working on the Hwy. 290 expansion project are making progress, having recently moved on to segments D, E and F, covering FM 529 up to Mueschke Road. Meanwhile, work is continuing on segments G and H, from FM 529 through the bridge at W. Little York, down to Pinemont Street.
The expansion of Hwy. 290 from the Grand Parkway to Loop 610 is set to be completed by 2017, said Karen Othon, public information officer with the Texas Department of Transportation's Hwy. 290 program. The portion from the Grand Parkway to Hwy. 6 will feature four lanes going in both directions and the portion from Hwy. 6 to Loop 610 will feature as many as six lanes.
The ultimate project vision, including the Hempstead Tollway, is set to be completed in 2035. The tollway portion was delayed because of lack of funding, but the widening of the existing roadway was deemed an immediate concern and is coming together ahead of schedule.
Workers are aiming to have construction complete on the second half of the bridge over W. Little York by late March or early April, Othon said. Work should also be wrapping up on the frontage roads around the Beltway 8 and Hwy. 290 interchange around that time.
Construction is ongoing on the frontage roads from FM 529 to Eldridge Parkway. This segment is set to be done in 2015.
The contractor also started working on the portions from Eldridge to Mueschke Road in February with a target completion date of 2016.
Bids go out this summer on segment C from Mueschke to Bauer Road with a target completion of 2017, Othon said. Segments A and B—from Bauer to the end of the project's scope at FM 2920—will begin in 2017 and will be complete by 2019.
Another piece of the expansion involves building a ramp directly connecting motorists traveling on I-10 to outbound Hwy. 290 and eastbound Loop 610. The four-lane ramp will feature two lanes going to Hwy. 290 and two lanes going to Loop 610.
Currently, drivers going from I-10 westbound to Hwy. 290 are forced to go through a "weave" motion, using Loop 610 as an interchange and cutting across the entire highway in a short period to get to the Hwy. 290 exit. This new ramp will eliminate the weave, and it should be opening by the end of 2014, Othon said.
"The builders will be given a bonus if they manage to finish before September, so they have an incentive," Othon said.
In addition to informational sessions with neighborhood associations and community groups, Othon said project managers have made an effort to reach out to businesses that will be affected by the upcoming construction.
"We started having section business meetings where we invite all the businesses in a particular section of the construction plan to come in, meet TxDOT project managers and give us a chance to explain to them what's going to be happening in front of their business," she said. "Their customers are our customers too. We want them to be informed of these closures, and we want to keep Hwy. 290 open for business through construction."
More than 495 businesses were invited to the section H meeting. Othon said the section D meeting—from Mueschke to Telge Road—will be later this spring.
"It's our goal to have these initial meetings and, throughout construction, have a routine meeting each month where all the businesses along the corridor can get an update," Othon said.
