713-627-3200
On This Page
Who is Completing the Application?
Please provide contact information for the person who will complete the online application for this project. The email address and password entered here will be used to complete and submit both Pre-Applications and Applications.
Wu Ying
Planner
713-541-3530
Primary Agency Information
Please provide contact information for the agency official who is representing the project sponsor. This individual will be considered the official applicant and must be authorized by their agency to submit this request for funding and make necessary assertations and representations on the agency’s behalf.
1001 Preston St, 7th Floor
Houston
TX
77002
Additional Agency Information
Project Information
Hardy Road from Greens Road to Bammel Road
Harris County
Hardy Road
East Hardy Road from Greens Road to Westfield Loop Road and West Hardy Road from Westfield Loop to Bammel Road
Hardy Road (Rd) is a 2-lane undivided deteriorating asphalt roadway with 11-foot lanes, deep roadside ditches, no shoulders, and four poorly maintained spur crossings. Many intersections lack a left turn lane or the existing left turn lanes do not have enough storage length. The turning radius at most intersections is too small for adequate truck movement. These unfavorable conditions for regular vehicles are exacerbated for the heavy truck and trailer traffic that are the primary users of Hardy Rd. Hardy Road runs north and south and is located near numerous industrial and commercial developments as well as multiple regional and nationally significant freight hubs, gateways, and corridors. As visible on the Location Map, Hardy Road is directly parallel to the Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR). It is adjacent to Hardy Toll Rd, east of Interstate Highway 45 (I45), west of George Bush Intercontinental Airport, south of Cypress Creek Parkway (FM 1960), and north of Beltway 8. The UPRR Westfield station is located within the project limits and the TX72R M.P. GMAC Yard/UPRR Lloyd Yard, an auto ramp, is a Primary Highway Freight System Intermodal Connector located to the north of the project. East (E) Hardy Rd between FM 1960 and Candle Ridge Park Dr is on the National Highway Freight Network Map, which affirms its importance as a freight route. In the August 2011 Houston-Galveston Area Council Regional Goods Movement Study - Needs Assessment (H-GAC Needs Assessment), Hardy Rd was identified as an Intermodal Connector and Freight-Significant Roadway. Freight-significant roadways are portions of today's regional roadway network that are important to freight and logistics activities. East (E) Hardy Rd is also identified as a Level 1 Truck Route in the December 2016 Harris County Truck Route Study. Level 1 Truck Routes are critical to regional connectivity to serve business community needs and to enhance efficient and safe truck traffic flow. The H-GAC 2045 Travel Demand Model indicates that by 2045, the traffic on Hardy Road between Greens Road and Bammel Road will increase to 19,630 vehicles per day. The H-GAC Needs Assessment predicts that between 2007 and 2035, this corridor will have a growth in all commodities of 4.4 to 10 million truck tons. Due to narrow undivided lanes without left turns at some intersections, motorist already experience delays. Moreover, in the past three years, there were 81 documented crashes and 92% of them resulted in possible injury and/or possible property damage per TxDOT Crash Records Information System. This project will improve north-south connectivity on the Freight Transportation System, especially for oversized and overweight freight. This project will also align with the City of Houston's long-range Transportation Plan - Major Thoroughfare and Freeway Plan (MTFP), which designates Hardy Rd as a Major Thoroughfare.
The Project will reconstruct about five miles of Hardy Rd from Greens Rd to Bammel Rd with two 14-foot lanes and one 12-foot continuous center turn lane along with a 10-foot wide shared use path and a drainage system meeting the most recent Federal Emergency Management Agency and Harris County Flood Control District Standards. Traffic signals will be upgraded at four Hardy Rd intersections: Rankin Road, Farrell Road, E Richey Road, and WW Thorne Boulevard. The traffic signal cabinets will also be upgraded to include connected vehicle technology. Traffic signal timing and phasing will be evaluated to minimize the potential crashes between left-turning vehicles and through vehicles. Additional enhancements such as pedestrian/bike traffic signals, street lights, high visibility crosswalks, directional crosswalk ramps, access point consolidation, and sight distances at driveways and intersections will be evaluated for improved safety.
The proposed two-lane configuration with continuous center turn lane will accommodate H-GAC 2045 traffic demands while reducing costs associated with Right-of-Way (ROW) acquisition for a typical four-lane boulevard cross-section. The 14-foot travel lanes will provide maneuver and buffer space for larger vehicles compared with the existing 11-foot travel lane. The center lane will provide clearance for oversized freight to travel simultaneously with opposing traffic. In addition, the continuous center turn lanes will provide storage capacity for left turning vehicles and reduce travel delays for through vehicles. A secondary outcome is the shared use path will provide a pedestrian accessible route along Hardy Rd to academic institutions like Parker Intermediate School, Clifford M Dunn Elementary School, Nimitz Ninth Grade School, Chester W. Nimitz Senior High School, and Lone Star College – North Harris Campus.
No
No
Less than $100 million
(Maintain) Roadway/Freight Rehabilitation/Reconstruction
20800000
Harris Co. Funding Commit Lttr& TxDOT Lttr of Acknowledgement.pdf
Project Development/Readiness
Not Started
Categorical Exclusion (CE)
02/29/2020
(c)(22)
Yes
No
Yes
No
Yes
02/29/2020
03/01/2020
01/31/2021
Depends on outcome of Preliminary Engineering
None
No
No
181015 Project Development Timeline.pdf
Harris County has committed $11,260,000 in local funds for this project, which will cover 100% of the Planning/Environmental, Design, Property/ROW Acquisition, and Utility Relocation costs and 20% of Construction costs. The details of the project cost break are provided in the 181022 Exhibit C- For 2018 TIP attachment. Coordination efforts needed for this project are identified and listed below: a) Four railroad spur crossings at various locations b) UPRR crossing of three rail sets at Westfield Loop Road c) Active 30-inch Natural Gas transmission line operated by Transcontinental Gas P.L. located approximately 200 feet north of Wooded Pine Dr d) Abandoned estimated 8-inch Hazardous Refined Liquid Products (Gas) line operated by Enterprise Products Operating LLC and located just south of Farrell Road e) 44’ span bridge across Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) Unit K211-00-00 f) 120’ span bridge across Turkey Creek HCFCD Unit K111-00-00 g) 26’ span bridge across HCFCD ditch north of Wooded Pine Dr
Exhibit C - Compensation for Professional Services - Hardy Rd.pdf
Map/Location
Benefit/Cost Analysis
181022 Roadway-Safety-Benefits.zip
181022 Roadway-Emissions-Benefits.zip
Benefits calculation for the project used the methodology H-GAC provided and the calculation results are attached in excel spreadsheets and PDF formats. The input value of “Service Life (years):” for the Delay Benefits spreadsheet was based on the auto-populated input value of “Service Life (years):” from the Safety Benefits spreadsheet. In the Emission Benefits calculation spreadsheet, the input for “Average Roadway Speed Before Improvement (mph)” was calculated using TDM output for 2018 Average Corridor Speed. B/C ratio is calculated by dividing the sum of safety, delay, and emission benefits by the amount of federal funding requested. B/C Ratio = (Safety Benefit + Delay Benefit + Emission Benefit)/Federal Funding Requested = ($15,516,000+$7,136,000+$6,474)/($20,800,000)= 109%
Planning Factors - Connectivity to Employment/Eliminates At-Grade Railroad Crossings
Yes
901 - 1000
No
Planning Factors - Environmental Justice
Yes
Yes
Planning Factors - Resiliency/Flood Mitigation Strategies
Yes
The project is located partially in Cypress Creek watershed and partially in Greens Bayou watershed. East Hardy Road between Westfield Loop and East Richey Road falls under Cypress Creek watershed and the rest of the project falls under Green Bayou watershed. The existing roadway is 22 feet wide with open ditches on both sides. The proposed roadway improvements include roadway reconstruction to 40 feet wide pavement, 10 foot wide shared use path, storm sewer system, and possible off-site detention pond(s). The proposed storm system between Westfield Loop and East Richey Road will outfall into Turkey Creek (a tributary to Cypress Creek). The storm system between East Richey Road and Greens Road will eventually discharge into Greens Bayou. Flood Resiliency will be considered in this project by implementing storm management techniques like porous pavement for the shared use path and off-site detention ponds. The proposed improvements will ensure that the increase in runoff due to the increase in pavement width will be effectively mitigated and will not have any adverse impact on the receiving systems and adjacent properties. The proposed drainage improvements will address any existing drainage deficiencies like structural flooding of adjacent properties, street ponding and capacities issues that may be accommodated in the existing Right of Way. Potential flood mitigation measures such as on-site or in-line detention will be evaluated during the Preliminary Engineering Phase.
Planning Factors - Improves Multimodal LOS
Yes
No
Yes
The project will improve automobile, freight, bicycle, and pedestrian multimodal Level of Service (LOS). LOS for transit is not improved, only, because there is no existing transit service along Hardy Road in the project area. Auto/Freight LOS: Hardy Road has been identified as a Level 1 Harris County Truck Route in the 2016 Harris County Truck Route Study where both legal, oversize, and overweight trucks are encouraged to travel. The demand for freight transportation is expected to increase in the near future considering the land use, the development potential in this area, its close proximity to the George Bush Intercontinental Airport, the Union Pacific Railroad, and numerous other freight generating and heavy load businesses. The existing roadway layout with one 11-foot lane in each direction with no left turn bays for several major intersections will be insufficient to serve the increasing travel demand, especially freight traffic. The proposed improvements for this project involve roadway reconstruction with two 14-foot lanes and a 12-foot center turn lane, which will be designed to accommodate the anticipated high truck volume by providing extra maneuver space for trucks compared to the existing 11-foot travel lanes. The center left turn lane will provide storage space for left turning vehicles and will contribute to the reduction in travel delay for through vehicles. By accomplishing the proposed improvements, the corridor will experience less travel delay, improved travel safety for different modes, and serve as a safe and efficient route for oversize and overweight freight while encouraging future land developments focused on freight generators and/or transfer facilities. Also, the project will provide north-south truck route connectivity to other truck routes serving the Greater Houston region. Bike/Ped LOS: As defined in the 2010 Highway Capacity Manual (HCM), LOS for pedestrian and bicyclist is determined by several variables, including bicycle lane/sidewalk presence, path width, buffer presence and perceived exposure to traffic. Currently, there are no facilities provided for pedestrians and bicyclists. The proposed dedicated 10-foot wide shared use path will provide dedicated space for both pedestrian and bicyclists with 4-feet extra space than the typical 6-foot wide sidewalk. The shared use path enables and stimulates non-motorized connection to key destinations like trails, schools (elementary, middle, high, and community college), and businesses. The pedestrians and bicyclists LOS experience will be further enhanced by the curbed pavement edge and 2-foot buffer between the traffic lanes and the 10-foot dedicated path, which will reduce their potential for direct contact with vehicles. Additionally, LOS for Bike/Ped will improve due to other potential enhancements such as Leading Bike/Ped Intervals at signalized intersections and high visibility crosswalks at strategic pedestrian and bicycle crossings.
Planning Factors - Planning Coordination
Yes
2017 City of Houston Major Thoroughfare and Freeway Plan; 2016 Harris County Truck Route Study; 2011 Aug H-GAC Regional Goods Movement Needs Assessment; US DOT Texas Multi-modal Freight Network Tables
http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/transportation/MTFP.html; http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/transportation/MTFPMap/MTFP_MAP_17.pdf; https://www.h-gac.com/taq/freight-planning/documents/HGAC-regional-goods-movement-plan-12-05-13.pdf; https://www.h-gac.com/taq/freight-planning/greater-houston-freight-committee/documents/critical-urban-freight-corridors.pdf
Planning Factors - Roadway Hierarchy/Freight System Priority/Evacuation Route
Minor Arterial
No
Yes
No
No
FINAL FULL - Harris County Truck Route Study_Final 12-9-2016.pdf