Katy Freeway Expansion: Has it made a big difference?

[thisdj78]

I had a chance to drive the Katy Freeway several times this past week during peak and non-peak hours. I'm thinking back 10 years and it seems like there's still back ups in the same areas as before the expansion. Specifically in the sections around Hwy 6 and BW 8. For those that have been commuting daily on the mainlanes for the past decade, have you noticed a big improvement?

[ethanhopkin14]

I am not from Houston, so I don't drive it everyday, but my old company had a Houston office that I would work out of a lot (months at a time) at Kirkwood and I-10, so I remember traffic both pre and post Katy Freeway expansion. My opinion is this: like 95% of TxDOT's widening projects, this one was also 20 years too late. They should have widened Katy Freeway long before there was a major traffic issue. As always is in Texas, when the upgrade is complete it is already obsolete. A prime example is the widening of Interstate 35 from 4 to 6 lanes from south of Temple to Hillsboro. It was needed 20 years ago, and when they finish the job it will need another lane because the jacked around so long doing what they did.

[Chris]

Some congestion is unavoidable in a booming metropolitan area of 6 million people. However, I think it's safe to say the amount of congestion dropped significantly. As I understand, the old six-lane Katy Freeway was congested in both directions for much of the day.

[ethanhopkin14]

Some congestion is unavoidable in a booming metropolitan area of 6 million people. However, I think it's safe to say the amount of congestion dropped significantly. As I understand, the old six-lane Katy Freeway was congested in both directions for much of the day.

I disagre in principal. Most congestion would be avoided if drivers wouldn't slow down over everything and just drive. Too many people don't have a clue how to drive.

[thisdj78]

Some congestion is unavoidable in a booming metropolitan area of 6 million people. However, I think it's safe to say the amount of congestion dropped significantly. As I understand, the old six-lane Katy Freeway was congested in both directions for much of the day.

I disagre in principal. Most congestion would be avoided if drivers wouldn't slow down over everything and just drive. Too many people don't have a clue how to drive.

I'd second that. From what I can tell, people seem to drive Katy like they still haven't got used to the flow. Honestly, it was quicker for me to ride the merge lane on and off to get from Hwy 6 to BW 8 because the outside 2 lanes were just a mass of confusion.

[agentsteel53]

I disagre in principal. Most congestion would be avoided if drivers wouldn't slow down over everything and just drive. Too many people don't have a clue how to drive.

indeed.  American drivers are morons.  every time I'm stuck in traffic that is heavy enough to produce ~10mph of slowdown from the usual speed of traffic (say, from 73 to 63mph in a signed 65), I think to myself "if this were Germany, I'd be doing 95 without interruption".

[Perfxion]

Its improved a lot, problem is its still needs more lanes. Bigger problem, everyone is moving west and north from Houston. Thus Katy, Cypress, Spring, Tomball, to Conroe and Waller are growing. They might need to cut frontage lanes for highway lanes. But, once the Grand parkway and Us290 projects are completed, it should help a lot of people just trying to bypass some of the area to go up and out.

[MaxConcrete]

I don't drive the freeway regularly, but I check the Houston Transtar realtime traffic map daily.

My analysis is that the expansion has achieved a huge improvement inside Beltway 8 /Sam Houston Tollway. It usually is flowing well, almost never red.

But outside of Beltway traffic appears to be as bad or worse as compared to before the expansion. The section between SH 6 and the Grand Parkway (SH 99) is especially bad. It is usually solid red in the morning going inbound, although traffic is always less in the summer so it is not that bad right now.

In short, there were serious design errors and insufficient capacity outside Beltway 8. At Loop 610, the freeway is designed for heavy traffic with more lanes and more merging zone and performs well.  Outside of BW 8 there is simply not enough lanes.

I have already seen a project on the HGAC (regional planning council) web site to restripe the freeway outside BW 8 to add a lane. I'm guessing they'll narrow the lanes and shrink the shoulder to squeeze in the much-needed additional lane.

[thisdj78]

They might need to cut frontage lanes for highway lanes.

In short, there were serious design errors and insufficient capacity outside Beltway 8. At Loop 610, the freeway is designed for heavy traffic with more lanes and more merging zone and performs well.  Outside of BW 8 there is simply not enough lanes.

I have already seen a project on the HGAC (regional planning council) web site to restripe the freeway outside BW 8 to add a lane. I'm guessing they'll narrow the lanes and shrink the shoulder to squeeze in the much-needed additional lane.

Agreed. It seems that they would have done better to have a single HOV going each direction all the way to 610 and toll it non peak hours. That along with the shoulder space could allow for 1-2 maybe even 3 more lanes each way in some spots. There's a lot of shoulder space that separates the toll lanes.

[Bobby5280]

I was in Houston a few weeks ago and drove on Katy Freeway a couple times. From what I saw, the traffic moved really well on the main lanes, but the tie-ups seem to occur at various off ramps. Basically there are numerous traffic bottleneck situations just off the Katy Freeway.

One example: the TX-99/Grand Parkway interchange. there's a lot of construction going on there. Some of the drivers were confused and exited early to the frontage road rather than stay put and take the recently opened flyover to TX-99.

Traffic lights at many intersections just off the freeway stay red for what seems like an abnormally long amount of time. We went through a series of signals near some medical center complex. I think we were stuck in front of that huge clinic for more than 10 minutes. It was ridiculous. All that waiting just amps up driver anxiety on trying to catch the green light in time.

Oh, one more thing: there's a LOT of maniac drivers on the road in Houston.