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Project Information

Old Conroe Road Extension (FM 1488 to LP 336) City of Conroe 1/12/2015 6:55:58 PM

Project Narrative

Traffic on IH-45 from FM 1486 to LP 336 is currently 185,000 vehicles per day with a v/c ratio of 0.82. With the rapidly growing of population and economy in Conroe, it is projected that the V/C ratio would reach 1.67 by 2040. There is a need to provide an alternative north-south connection and reduce the traffic congestion on I-45. This will become increasing important in regards to future adjacent local developments. Two in particular are a Del Webb development featuring approximately 1,500 homes and a D.R. Horton development with another approximately 1,500 homes. Old Conroe Road from FM 1486 to its current terminus at 1, 500 feet north of Lake Forest Drive is currently a 2-lane roadway that terminates approximately halfway between Conroe and The Woodlands. The proposed project would extend Old Conroe Road as a continuous roadway to LP 336. The proposed project would connect FM 1486 and LP 336 and serve as a relief for commuter traffic on I-45. In addition, land adjacent to Old Conroe Road are mostly undeveloped and are ready for future development. The proposed project would also provide access to this undeveloped project adjacent to the project corridor. The project would reduce traffic congestion on traffic on I- 45 by providing an alternative north-south connection, and provide access to land along the project corridor. This would enhance economic development and create an alternate access route between The Woodlands Township and the City of Conroe besides IH-45. The project would extend Old Conroe Road as a 4-lane roadway by expanding the existing section of roadway from FM 1488 to its current terminus to a 4-lane roadway, and build a new 4-lane divided roadway from its current terminus to LP 336. The project would also build a bridge over the West Fork of the San Jacinto River. Three alternatives have been considered and evaluated: • No Action. Under No Action, Old Conroe road would continue to terminate at 1500 north of Lake Forest Drive. This scenario will not help congestion, safety, or economic development. • Alternative A would extend Old Conroe road as a continued 2 –lane undivided roadway from its current terminus to LP 336. • Alternative B would extend Old Conroe road as a 4-lane roadway by expanding the existing section of roadway from FM 1488 to its current terminus to a 4-lane divided roadway, and build a new 4-lane divided roadway from its current terminus to LP 336. Alternative B meets the project objectives. Compared with Alternative A, Alternative B would increase the roadway capacity by 50% and reduce more traffic on I-45. Alternative B is preferred alternative. The implementation of Alternative A - extending the roadway without a widening to 4 lanes, would be an opportunity for staged construction of this project. A map of the phase 1 alignment has been included for consideration below.

Phase 1.pdf

Project Narrative

No

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) Please Select Yes West Fork San Jacinto River is a natural stream. Therefore, it is a water of the United States and is jurisdictional under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act of 1972. Since the proposed project would build a bridge over West Fork San Jacinto River, a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act of 1972 will be required before project construction. 01/12/2017 Yes 2 10/12/2015 Yes There are no utility lines close enough to the projected alignment to necessitate any utility adjustments or relocation. No

This project is represented in the City of Conroe Major Thoroughfare plan (see attachment) which was adopted through ordinance no. 1795-07 on 6/28/2007. The ordinance and adoption process was a public process which encompassed the creation of the City of Conroe Comprehensive Plan as well. Each chapter of the plan is available here: http://www.cityofconroe.org/departments/public-works-home-page/planning/comprehensive-plan

Thoroughfare Plan.pdf

This project is supported by Montgomery County Commissioner Charlie Riley. This project has the potential to be phased in that rather than reconstructing the entirety of the roadway in a four-lane alignment, the two existing two-lane segments can be connected. In the future, additional right-of-way can be acquired to widen the roadway to a full, four-lane segment. This has been attached on the first page of the application.

Commissioner Riley Support.pdf

Map/Location

Old Conroe Road.mpk

Project Budget

Old Conroe Road - Project Costs.xlsx

No

No

Evalutation Questions - Major Investments

Benefit/Cost Methodology

Please attach the completed BCA Excel worksheet and narrative explanation of analyses used

benefit cost analysis .xlsx

Old Conroe Road BC Narrative.pdf

Narrative Benefits

The proposed improvement would construct a 4-lane divided roadway with a safety median to reduce the head-on collision. The proposed project would also install retro-reflective signs along the roadway to improve highway safety and prevent roadway departure crashes by bouncing light from vehicle headlights back toward the vehicle and the driver's eyes, making the signs appear brighter and easier to see and read. In addition, traffic congestion on I-45 increases the occurrence of serious injury accidents. The proposed project would reduce the traffic on I-45 and therefore would indirectly reduce traffic collisions on I-45.

Traffic on I-45 from FM 1486 to LP 336 is currently 185,000 vehicles per day with a v/c ratio of 0.82. It is projected that by 2040 the v/c ratio will reach 1.67. There is a need to provide an alternative north-south connection and release the traffic congestion on I-45. The proposed project will connect FM 1486 and LP 336 and will serve as a relief for commuter traffic on I-45. Additionally, this roadway would provide a relief valve for IH-45 for the approximately 3,000 new homes planned in the vicinity by D.R. Horton and Del Webb.

Old Conroe Road BC Narrative.pdf

The City of Conroe will work with Montgomery County in order to create a maintenance agreement for the long term maintenance of the new facility.

The proposed project will extend the old Conroe road from its current terminus at 1,500 feet north of Lake forest Dr. to LP 336. Currently, lands adjacent to the project corridor are mostly wooded area and are undeveloped. The proposed project will provide access to undeveloped lands along the project route. The result of the new access provided by the proposed action would be an “Induced Growth Effect.” Since the proposed project would provide thoroughfare access to adjacent areas that are currently without access and undeveloped, it would be expected to open these areas to commercial and residential development as well. It is likely that the project would spur development of 5,000 acres of commercial and residential land use within one mile of the project corridor. This development will be further augmented by the adjacent and under-construction Exxon "Houston" Campus.

The project will provide an alternative north-south connection other than IH-45 and therefore reduce traffic congestion. The reduced severe congestion will reduce fuel consumption by reducing vehicle hour traveled and therefore reduce emissions. In addition, the reduced severe congestion would also smooth the stop-and-go pattern of traffic on IH-45 so that cars move at a relatively constant speed, which can reduce CO2 emissions. The majority of the alignment either contains existing roadway. Portions of the alignment (including the bridge crossing) once contained a roadway. The amount of "virgin" land, converted into a transportation use for this project is minimal.

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