I-69 in TX

[Grzrd]

In this case it's a freeway. I am sure the people in Falfurious who watch all the NAFTA trucks pounce upon their town might think differently.

Now it's more "zoom past" than "pounce upon".  US 281 through Falfurrias is now a freeway, and it wouldn't surprise me if it soon becomes another I-69C segment. 
I lucked into the opening when I was in south Texas in early March.  The new freeway was open in one direction when I drove it, with the other direction scheduled to open the next day.

This article reports that ground has been broken for a new Border Patrol checkpoint in Falfurrias:

Driving north on Interstate 69 out of the Rio Grande Valley a sign reads Falfurrias 20, a tree line begins on the median of the highway and a mile up the highway there is a Border Patrol checkpoint.
Ten thousand vehicles pass the Falfurrias checkpoint everyday making it the busiest in the United States in the amount of seizures and apprehensions. With some luck there is a chance to pass smoothly and not be delayed.
Beginning in the summer of 2018 the United States Border Patrol hopes to change any inconvenience for motorists when they open a new state-of-the-art, 20,000 square-foot checkpoint ....
The cost of the new checkpoint will be in the $30 million range and will feature a 8,600 square-foot main building, 4,000 square-foot storage building and a 2,000 square-foot dog kennel.
From the ingress to the egress of the checkpoint everything will be vastly improved which will include new lanes for traffic. Four lanes will be used for commercial traffic and Four lanes will be used for non-commercial traffic.
There will be a substantial increase in non-intrusive technology, x-ray technology and radiation technology.
"Instead of handheld equipment we're looking at drive-through portals that will come through the checkpoint," Slowinski said.
Deputy Chief Patrol Agent for the RGV Sector Raul Ortiz said there should be no delays in traffic due to the construction of the new checkpoint. The RGV Sector will keep the staffing model as is and since the new facility is being built just north of the existing checkpoint it will be business as usual at the current checkpoint.

[Alex]

In this case it's a freeway. I am sure the people in Falfurious who watch all the NAFTA trucks pounce upon their town might think differently.

Now it's more "zoom past" than "pounce upon".  US 281 through Falfurrias is now a freeway, and it wouldn't surprise me if it soon becomes another I-69C segment. 
I lucked into the opening when I was in south Texas in early March.  The new freeway was open in one direction when I drove it, with the other direction scheduled to open the next day.

This article reports that ground has been broken for a new Border Patrol checkpoint in Falfurrias:

Driving north on Interstate 69 out of the Rio Grande Valley a sign reads Falfurrias 20, a tree line begins on the median of the highway and a mile up the highway there is a Border Patrol checkpoint.
Ten thousand vehicles pass the Falfurrias checkpoint everyday making it the busiest in the United States in the amount of seizures and apprehensions. With some luck there is a chance to pass smoothly and not be delayed.
Beginning in the summer of 2018 the United States Border Patrol hopes to change any inconvenience for motorists when they open a new state-of-the-art, 20,000 square-foot checkpoint ....
The cost of the new checkpoint will be in the $30 million range and will feature a 8,600 square-foot main building, 4,000 square-foot storage building and a 2,000 square-foot dog kennel.
From the ingress to the egress of the checkpoint everything will be vastly improved which will include new lanes for traffic. Four lanes will be used for commercial traffic and Four lanes will be used for non-commercial traffic.
There will be a substantial increase in non-intrusive technology, x-ray technology and radiation technology.
"Instead of handheld equipment we're looking at drive-through portals that will come through the checkpoint," Slowinski said.
Deputy Chief Patrol Agent for the RGV Sector Raul Ortiz said there should be no delays in traffic due to the construction of the new checkpoint. The RGV Sector will keep the staffing model as is and since the new facility is being built just north of the existing checkpoint it will be business as usual at the current checkpoint.

Without looking at the quoted text afterwards, I had to ponder which branch of IH 69, since the article referenced just Interstate 69. Makes me wonder how much confusion with the general public the eventual completed branches will cause with all three suffixes in use.

[vdeane]

Falfurrias is I-69C.  Maybe if there's enough confusion we'll be able to get rid of these stupid suffixes.

[GreenLanternCorps]

The I-69 Driven By Texans website recently posted a page about the US 77/Future I-69E Kingsville-Driscoll project, with construction ramping up this Spring and anticipated to have an opening date of October 2016

The Alliance for I-69 Texas has posted an update on current I-69E projects, which includes the following map illustrating the projects:

This Dec. 1 TV video reports that the eight-mile stretch of I-69E around Bishop should open in January:

Traveling down Highway 77 through Bishop should become an easier task over the next few months. Texas Department of Transportation officials said all of the major work along the eight-mile stretch will be completed in January.

What about Driscoll?  Google maps shows that part of US-77 going though town.

https://www.google.com/maps/@27.6723454,-97.7496732,3a,75y,24.46h,90.53t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sChF2vLwFqZr4G-IKZild-g!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Does not look like a lot of room, so they will have to bypass Driscoll too...

Update:

Nevermind, on the original link it says the following...

"DRISCOLL RELIEF ROUTE - A relief route around the town of Driscoll will be built in the future.  It will close a gap in highway upgrades of about six miles and will create a connected freeway from Interstate 37 at Corpus Christi south through Kingsville. The relief route will run through open farm fields and cross Petronila Creek on the east side of Driscoll."

[Grzrd]

TxDOT will hold a Open House on February 9 regarding upgrading US 59 to I-69 in Wharton County:

Where:   Wharton Civic Center
1924 N Fulton St.
Wharton, TX 77488 (Map)
When:   Thursday, Feb. 9, 2017
5:30 p.m.- 6:30 p.m. Open House
6:30 p.m. Hearing
Purpose:   TxDOT is proposing to upgrade US 59 to Interstate Highway Standards from FM 2919 to FM 710 in Wharton County, Texas.
Description:   The proposed project would include:
A four-lane divided roadway (two 12-foot lanes in each direction) with 4-foot inside shoulders and 12-foot outside shoulders divided by a depressed grass median that varies from 34 to 62 feet in width
Continuous frontage roads (two12-foot lanes in each direction) with 10-foot outside shoulders and 4-foot inside shoulders
Total length of the proposed construction area is 39.5 miles in length.

The Draft Environmental Assessment contains a map of the project area (p. 57/161 of pdf), as well as many detailed segment maps:

[abqtraveler]

TxDOT will hold a Open House on February 9 regarding upgrading US 59 to I-69 in Wharton County:

Where:   Wharton Civic Center
1924 N Fulton St.
Wharton, TX 77488 (Map)
When:   Thursday, Feb. 9, 2017
5:30 p.m.- 6:30 p.m. Open House
6:30 p.m. Hearing
Purpose:   TxDOT is proposing to upgrade US 59 to Interstate Highway Standards from FM 2919 to FM 710 in Wharton County, Texas.
Description:   The proposed project would include:
A four-lane divided roadway (two 12-foot lanes in each direction) with 4-foot inside shoulders and 12-foot outside shoulders divided by a depressed grass median that varies from 34 to 62 feet in width
Continuous frontage roads (two12-foot lanes in each direction) with 10-foot outside shoulders and 4-foot inside shoulders
Total length of the proposed construction area is 39.5 miles in length.

The Draft Environmental Assessment contains a map of the project area (p. 57/161 of pdf), as well as many detailed segment maps:

Fire up the bulldozers and git'er done!

[Bobby5280]

When will TX DOT start extending I-69E farther north from its current end outside Raymondville? Right now the freeway stops on an at-grade crossing just North of Raymondville. It looks like a ranch entrance. There is a somewhat fancy entrance sign with "La Prieta" letters on the East side of the highway. I wonder what method they will use to handle those ranch entrances and other at grade crossings.

Obviously TX DOT is not going to build full frontage roads the entire distance between Raymondville and Kingsville. Some at grade crossings will simply be removed. Others will run into frontage roads of short length. Bridge crossings will be limited.

It seems like more actual progress has been made on the I-69C corridor North of Edinburg. I-69C now runs up to an exit with FM-490. There is a 7 mile gap between there and the freeway quality exit TX-186 in Linn. Maybe TX DOT will fill that gap and have the North end of I-69C running about parallel with the North end of I-69E before anything else happens with I-69E.

By the way, just looking at some Google Street View imagery down there I have to say most of the I-69E and I-69C shields look ugly as sin. They're neutered and have overly large numerals. The extremely crowded numeral/letter spacing totally ruins the look of those things.

[Grzrd]

TxDOT must be assuming that the proposed legislation will be enacted because an August, 2015 TxDOT I-69 System Planning and Environmental Progress map includes a study about the SH 44 route through Robstown:

TxDOT will hold a February 9 Open House about the route through Robstown, including the interchange with I-69E; here's some excerpts from the Flier for the meeting:

In December 2015, a congressional law was passed that identified SH 44, from US 59 in Freer to SH 358 in Corpus Christi, to become part of the I-69 system as sections are upgraded to meet interstate standards. In response, TxDOT is undertaking a SH 44 Robstown Route Study to identify needs and route options for upgrading SH 44 to meet interstate standards in the Robstown area between Farm to Market Road (FM) 1694 and County Road (CR) 81 ....
TxDOT has already been developing projects east of Robstown to upgrade SH 44. The purpose of this study is to evaluate and identify the potential best route options for extending an upgraded SH 44 that meets interstate standards farther west in the Robstown area between FM 1694 and CR 81. Once identified, the route options to be advanced for further detailed design and environmental study would be made available for additional public review and input. It is important to note that there is no current funding to complete the design, right-of-way acquisition and construction of this project.

Here's a snip of the map from the Flier:

[longhorn]

Why is there a I-369  designation into Texarkana? I thought that was the I-69 route?

[sparker]

Why is there a I-369  designation into Texarkana? I thought that was the I-69 route?

The I-369 routing in NE TX satisfies the HPC 20 language within the I-69 grouping (along with HPC 18, which addresses most of the rest).  The I-69/HPC 18 mainline has always been projected to cross from TX to LA north or NE of Tenaha en route to the Shreveport area, while I-369/HPC 20 was designated several years ago as the Texarkana "branch" more or less along US 59. 

[Grzrd]

TxDOT will hold a February 9 Open House about the route through Robstown, including the interchange with I-69E:

TxDOT has posted the materials from the Open House.  Here is a snip of a map of the alternatives from the Fact Sheet. 



More detailed maps are among the materials.  I'm guessing that TxDOT will not apply for an interstate designation until the interchange with I-69E is complete (I-x69?, I-6?). Unfortunately, the following slide from the Exhibit Boards indicates that it may take a while:

[MikeSantNY78]

This has probably been brought up, but I can't seem to find it.  What's going to happen to all the 69C, 69b, 69D, whatever routes if (when)mainline  69 gets finished?

I think they will remain the way they are. There is no mainline I-35 in the 35W/35E sections. (69b and 69D, however, do not exist. C stands for "central", not C for being the third letter of the alphabet.)

The "mainline" exit numbers, though, for Texas' I-35 split, follow the E branch (Minnesota's, too)...information only.

[Grzrd]

The Alliance for I-69 Texas has posted an update on current I-69E projects

Neverrmind, on the original link it says the following...
"DRISCOLL RELIEF ROUTE - A relief route around the town of Driscoll will be built in the future.  It will close a gap in highway upgrades of about six miles and will create a connected freeway from Interstate 37 at Corpus Christi south through Kingsville. The relief route will run through open farm fields and cross Petronila Creek on the east side of Driscoll."

This article reports that the Driscoll relief route will be let in summer of 2018, completing I-69E between Corpus Christi and Kingsville:

The state has earmarked nearly $104 million to a U.S. Highway 77 relief route around the town of Driscoll roughly between County Road 28 on the north and County Road 16 to the south. The bulk of the money — $79.5 million — will be for construction. The balance will pay for things like purchasing land for the route and for engineering services.
"The U.S. 77 relief route at the city of Driscoll will complete the last section of the I-69 corridor between Corpus Christi and Kingsville,"  said Chris Caron, TxDOT's district engineer in Corpus Christi. "Removing high-speed traffic from a low-speed urban setting enhances mobility and safety."
There are two parts to the work planned for U.S. 77. TxDOT also plans a $37 million project to build new lanes and overpasses on the highway south of Driscoll to Farm to Market 3354.
The state will begin accepting bids for the U.S. 77 improvements in the summer of 2018.

There are also plans to improve I-37/69E:

To the north, the state plans to spend nearly $46 million to widen a 2.5-mile stretch of Interstate 37 from the overpass at Red Bird Lane to where the freeway crosses the Nueces River. The transportation department describes the section of I-37 as a "metro corridor"  that needs congestion relief.
The state already owns the land needed for the widening project, so all but about $5 million of the project's cost will go toward construction. The bid process is expected to begin in summer 2020.
"The I-37 project involves construction of a new bridge over the Nueces River, which will improve hurricane evacuation for the Coastal Bend and the Rio Grande Valley,"  Canon said. "Also, since interstate traffic traveling on I-69 and I-37 share this stretch of roadway, the increased capacity resulting from this project is important to the interstate commerce of Texas and the nation."

[aboges26]

The Alliance for I-69 Texas has posted an update on current I-69E projects

Neverrmind, on the original link it says the following...
"DRISCOLL RELIEF ROUTE - A relief route around the town of Driscoll will be built in the future.  It will close a gap in highway upgrades of about six miles and will create a connected freeway from Interstate 37 at Corpus Christi south through Kingsville. The relief route will run through open farm fields and cross Petronila Creek on the east side of Driscoll."

This article reports that the Driscoll relief route will be let in summer of 2018, completing I-69E between Corpus Christi and Kingsville:

The state has earmarked nearly $104 million to a U.S. Highway 77 relief route around the town of Driscoll roughly between County Road 28 on the north and County Road 16 to the south. The bulk of the money — $79.5 million — will be for construction. The balance will pay for things like purchasing land for the route and for engineering services.
"The U.S. 77 relief route at the city of Driscoll will complete the last section of the I-69 corridor between Corpus Christi and Kingsville,"  said Chris Caron, TxDOT's district engineer in Corpus Christi. "Removing high-speed traffic from a low-speed urban setting enhances mobility and safety."
There are two parts to the work planned for U.S. 77. TxDOT also plans a $37 million project to build new lanes and overpasses on the highway south of Driscoll to Farm to Market 3354.
The state will begin accepting bids for the U.S. 77 improvements in the summer of 2018.

There are also plans to improve I-37/69E:

To the north, the state plans to spend nearly $46 million to widen a 2.5-mile stretch of Interstate 37 from the overpass at Red Bird Lane to where the freeway crosses the Nueces River. The transportation department describes the section of I-37 as a "metro corridor"  that needs congestion relief.
The state already owns the land needed for the widening project, so all but about $5 million of the project's cost will go toward construction. The bid process is expected to begin in summer 2020.
"The I-37 project involves construction of a new bridge over the Nueces River, which will improve hurricane evacuation for the Coastal Bend and the Rio Grande Valley,"  Canon said. "Also, since interstate traffic traveling on I-69 and I-37 share this stretch of roadway, the increased capacity resulting from this project is important to the interstate commerce of Texas and the nation."

So it seems that I-69E will be finished from Corpus to RGV at the close of the '10s and get set up nicely to start the I-37 to Victoria section in the '20s!  Does that mean we should see (if status quo highway upgrading pace largely remains) the last sections link I-69 and I-69E around 2027 or 2028?

[Henry]

Hopefully we will, but you never know.

[Grzrd]

TxDOT completed its US 281/US 59 Planning and Feasibility Study - Interstate (I-69C) in October (it should be posted on the TxDOT website in the relatively near future).  Basically, the goal is to complete I-69C from Edinburg to Alice by 2037, in part to allow for immediate I-69C signage for completed segments (pp. 11-12/15 of pdf; pp. 8-9 of document):

The Alice connection to the TX 44 corridor from the south appears to be the top priority .... TxDOT has posted the US 281/US 59 Planning and Feasibility Study - Interstate (I-69C).

TxDOT held an Open House for US 281/Future I-69C on April 25 for an approximate seven-mile section with three interchanges (p. 4/9 of pdf)



Construction is estimated to start Summer 2020.



At the southern end of I-69C, TxDOT has

put together a video showing options for improving the I-69C/I-2 intercgange.

[jlwm]

They've started numbering exits in the Houston District. I've noticed newly numbered exits on I-69/US 59 southbound near downtown Houston but I'm not sure if other sections have numbered exits yet. The exit to I-45 is 129B, Tuam/McGowen is 129A, and the exit to 288 is 128B.

[O Tamandua]

I remember the late Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) once referred to himself during a re-election campaign as "Ol' Kennedy".

With that in mind, have we heard anything recently about the process of getting I-69E ready in "Ol' Kenedy (County)", the longest bloc of the highway in one county between Corpus Christi and Brownsville?

[Bobby5280]

The news on I-69E probably couldn't be all that great if they're throwing out year 2037 time tables on completing the I-69C leg of this project.

[sparker]

The news on I-69E probably couldn't be all that great if they're throwing out year 2037 time tables on completing the I-69C leg of this project.

Reading the press release in the previous post, it looks like the 2037 date is the latest time period that can be projected in order to be able to sign interim segments of I-69C (or any disconnected Interstate segment, for that matter): 25 years after the authorizing MAP-21 passage, which changed the criteria for signage from direct Interstate system connection to a 25-year "window" in which to effect such connection.  This is the reason that I-22, I-2, and other segments not connecting to the continuous US Interstate network are allowed to sign their segments (22 has already met that criteria with the completion of the I-65 Birmingham interchange, but signage preceded that by a couple of years.)  Whether TxDOT budgets and constructs those segments well ahead of that deadline, or elects to stretch out development over that entire time frame will likely become apparent in the next decade or so.

[Grzrd]

I remember the late Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) once referred to himself during a re-election campaign as "Ol' Kennedy".
With that in mind, have we heard anything recently about the process of getting I-69E ready in "Ol' Kenedy (County)", the longest bloc of the highway in one county between Corpus Christi and Brownsville?

The 73 page March 2016 I-69 Implementation Strategy Report that provides the current status of each I-69 project in Texas (at least as of March, 2016) appears to target 2025 as the date (p. 71/73 of pdf):



Of interest are four overpasses scheduled for 2060 (you'll be old by then!). I think these are are the "turnarounds" designed for ranch vehicles. They probably would get a waiver similar to the one Arkansas got for I-555 for interstate status until traffic counts would warrant them. I think the 2060 date for the green, 0.5 mile, Willacy/Kenedy county line is a typo.

Maybe with a bit of luck Kenedy County Will be finished in 2030.

Here's the color codes from the Implementation Report (p.69/73 of pdf):

[O Tamandua]

Thank you, Grzrd.  Interesting that there's a 1+ mile section in Kenedy around La Parra Ave. already pending review, ostensibly whether it meets interstate standards right now?

[TXtoNJ]

They've started numbering exits in the Houston District. I've noticed newly numbered exits on I-69/US 59 southbound near downtown Houston but I'm not sure if other sections have numbered exits yet. The exit to I-45 is 129B, Tuam/McGowen is 129A, and the exit to 288 is 128B.

I noticed that they've mounted the exit number tabs to the center of advance notice BGS, rather than to the side of the exit as is standard for the rest of Texas. Contractor error, or MUTCD change (like the single gore exit signs)?

[Chris]

TxDOT has issued a FONSI for the US 59 upgrade in western Wharton County, an approximately 12 mile segment from the Jackson County line to El Campo.

http://www.txdot.gov/inside-txdot/get-involved/about/hearings-meetings/yoakum/062617.html

[GreenLanternCorps]

TxDOT has issued a FONSI for the US 59 upgrade in western Wharton County, an approximately 12 mile segment from the Jackson County line to El Campo.

http://www.txdot.gov/inside-txdot/get-involved/about/hearings-meetings/yoakum/062617.html

So this looks to be just a few miles south of the current southern end of I-69.

So, am I right in thinking that this segment has passed all of the environmental and planning hurdles and now just needs funding and construction?