ANSWERS FROM TxDOT: TxDOT answers questions about West 18th Street plans, Hempstead Tollway traffic flow, US 290 acquisition, Noise

Will there be 18th Street exit ramps from the new Hempstead Tollway?

The exit ramps inbound on the proposed Hempstead Tollway approaching IH 610 will be located just before Antoine and just before the IH 610 southbound frontage road. Both of these provide access to West 18th Street either by passing through the light at Antoine and the one at Mangum to turn left onto West 18th Street, or by turning left at the IH 610 northbound frontage road and driving north on the IH 610 frontage road to the West 18th Street intersection.

Will there be 18th Street exit ramps from the 610 Loop after the Hempstead Tollway is built?

Yes. There will be an exit from the IH 610 northbound main lanes in approximately the same location as the existing exit ramp. Plus there will be access from IH 610 northbound, and by an exit ramp from the direct connectors, I-10 to US 290. Doing so will provide access to the IH 610 northbound frontage road and to the proposed frontage road bridge over the Union Pacific Railroad and Hempstead. Conditions from the North Loop headed southbound will remain the same as existing with no direct exit to West 18th Street. The North Loop exits T.C. Jester or you can go toward Dacoma and make the U-turn at that location back to the frontage road leading to West 18th Street.

Do you know of any plans to widen 18th Street between Hempstead Highway and the West Loop?

We are not aware of any widening plans and the City of Houston*s Capital Improvement Program should be reviewed for any future widening of 18th Street. Any widening of 18th Street between Hempstead Highway and IH 610 West loop is not part of this project.

Under the preliminary plan, how will traffic exiting the Hempstead Tollway merge onto Old Katy Road? Will there be a traffic light for exiting traffic?

The Hempstead Tollway traffic will exit onto IH 610 northbound frontage road approximately 1,000 feet north of Old Katy Road. The IH 610 northbound frontage road traffic and tollway exit ramp traffic will intersect Old Katy Road at a traffic signal.

Traffic on the Hempstead Tollway will have to exit onto Old Katy Road to connect to I-10. Will Old Katy Road be widened to handle the extra traffic from the tollway? How will traffic merge onto the Old Katy Road from the tollway?

Access from the Hempstead managed toll lanes will have three options for connecting to I-10 towards downtown. You will be able to exit the toll road directly to existing Hempstead at IH 610 frontage road intersections and then continue along existing Hempstead Highway to Washington Avenue and on to the traffic signal at I-10. Or, you could exit Old Katy Road as noted in the question above and turn left at a signalized intersection with Old Katy Road and proceed to Washington Avenue and the intersection at I-10. In the third option, you can continue on the connector from the toll road directly into METRO's Northwest Transit Center where qualifying High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) traffic can proceed to the inbound I-10 HOV lanes via the ramps through the Interchange. I-10 Southbound traffic can exit Old Katy Road and turn right and pass through the signal at North Post Oak either entering the I-10 Managed Lanes outbound or entering the I-10 main lanes on a ramp from the frontage road.

TxDOT envisions two- or three-lane frontage roads in each direction along the reconstructed US 290. How many feet of right of way will be acquired to construct these frontage roads?

Please keep in mind that two- and three-lane frontage roads currently exist along the majority of US 290. The additional Right-of-Way (ROW) required is to accommodate all components of the typical section, including the additional capacity lanes. Near the IH 610 and US 290 interchange, the approximate ROW acquisition required generally varies between 25 feet and 50 feet.

Have there been any studies of possible increased noise in nearby neighborhoods from traffic on the higher elevated ramps, which are planned for the reconstructed US 290/IH 610 interchange?

Noise studies and any mitigation measures are an integral part of developing the Environmental Impact Statement document. These noise studies will be performed later this year as a part of this process between the Draft Environmental Impact Statement and Final Environmental Impact Statement

How can people find out about when and where the public meeting for the US 290 expansion will be held?

(Near Northwest Banner, May 4, 2007)