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SH 36 Widening TxDOT 1/12/2015 1:16:52 PMProject Narrative
This is one project that is part of a 51 mile SH 36 corridor improvement project. SH 36 is on the NHS and is functionally classified as 3: principle arterial. The proposed improvements would upgrade SH 36, a designated hurricane evacuation route, to increase safety, access, and mobility for the movement of goods and people in the southern Brazoria/coastal area. The project will also serve the local transportation needs of communities and towns including: Rosenberg, Pleak, Needville, Guy, Damon, West Columbia, Brazoria, Jones Creek, and Freeport. The need for the project is based on existing and anticipated congestion, safety, operations/state of good repair, and economic conditions of the area, including: • Improved operational efficiency and safety, • Correct roadway deficiencies, hydraulics/drainage, shoulders, correcting steep side slopes, and improving bridges, • Added capacity for project population and economic growth; • Improved mobility for hurricane evacuations due to SH 36’s designation as a hurricane evacuation route; • Improved intermodal relationship with the Port of Freeport; • Current truck traffic is at 10 percent and expected to increase; • Facility is considered a freight bottleneck; • Safety concerns, in that existing roadway alignments and configurations do not meet current AASHTO standards During the Hurricane Rita (2005) evacuation event, SH 36 performed at a LOS F. With mobility being a key component for a hurricane evacuation route, improvements to the existing SH 36 facility are needed to upgrade the LOS to a level C or better during evacuation events. SH 36 serves as a major transportation route for trucks importing and exporting commercial and industrial supplies to the Port of Freeport. The Port is expected to grow both in facility size and import/export traffic. The purpose of the proposed project is to increase capacity and mobility and to improve the roadway design of the SH 36 facility. Additional travel lanes will accommodate the projected increase in traffic volumes during hurricane evacuations and projected future corridor traffic demands. Improving the existing roadway design by adding dedicated turning lanes and improving intersections will better accommodate turning movements along the corridor, thus improving safety, efficiency, and mobility in the project area for local traffic and heavy truck traffic from the Port of Freeport. The proposed roadway improvements would upgrade SH 36, a designated hurricane evacuation route, to increase safety, access and mobility for the transportation of people and commercial goods in coastal areas in emergency situations. This project would also serve the local transportation needs of communities and towns within the project area, which includes West Columbia The proposed roadway would consist of a four-lane divided facility with a continuous center left-turn lane. The proposed SH 36 improvements begin at the intersection of BS 35 E in West Columbia and end at FM 522, Brazoria County, Texas. The proposed roadway would consist of four 12-ft lanes, a 14-ft flush median (center left-turn lane) with ditches and a curb and gutter design. In general, rural areas will have a 10-foot outside shoulder to accommodate bikes and urban sections will have sidewalks. The proposed project would generally follow the existing vertical and horizontal alignment except in areas where changes are required for design and safety standards or engineering/environmental constraints. Flush medians would allow for continuous left turning movements in urban areas. Several alternative alignments were investigated for the SH 36 roadway improvements based on an analysis of the existing traffic conditions, forecasts of future travel demand, and projected population growth. Several conceptual alternatives were considered, including a no build alternative, using a systematic, interdisciplinary approach, which included input from the public, as well as federal, state, and local agencies. Three alternatives for the SH 36 alignment were investigated. These alternatives were evaluated along the existing alignment including an east, west, and center alignment to accommodate the roadway widening. The no-build alternative was also considered. Both design and environmental constraints were evaluated in determining the preferred alignment. The improvements outlined in this application represent the preferred alternative. The No-Build Alternative would not improve the roadway. Only routine maintenance would occur within this area, therefore, congestion would continue and safety problems may increase and evacuation would be compromised. The 51-mile corridor covered under one Environmental Assessment would be divided into segments during construction, and these segments may be further divided into phases where overpasses would be constructed. Frontage roads may be constructed first at these overpasses to allow for uninterrupted traffic flow while the main lanes are under construction. The project represented in this application represents one stage of the total Environmental Assessment corridor.Project Narrative
Yes Environmental Assessment (EA) Please Select Yes The EA is 100 percent complete. This section will require an Army Corps of Engineers Permit; IP received 8/17/2014 and expires 12/31/2019; FONSI received in 2008, will require re-eval. 02/01/2007 Yes 87 01/01/2019 Yes West Columbia owns extensive sewer and water facilities that would need to be adjusted at their expense. There are also extensive power, cable and telephone facilities that will need to be adjusted at the owners’ expense. No Public involvement for the project, thus far, has included three rounds of public meetings and three limited public meetings. The first round of public meetings was held by TxDOT in September 1999 and consisted of two meetings, one at Needville High School and one at Brazoria Intermediate School. The second round of public meetings was held November 1, 2, and 3, 2000. Three meetings were held at Needville High School, First Baptist Church of Brazoria, and the Brazosport High School in Freeport. The purpose of these meetings was to present three proposed alternatives for the SH 36 alignment. The second Limited Public Meeting was held in February 2001 for the town of Jones Creek. The purpose of this meeting was to present alternatives for the SH 36/FM 2004 interchange just north of the town of Jones Creek as well as present several roadway design options through the town of Jones Creek. On April 18 and 19, 2001, a third round of public meetings was held to present the preferred alignment to the public. These meetings were held at the same locations as the second round of public meetings. This alignment consisted generally of widening to a four-lane divided section with a grassy center median in rural areas and a four-lane undivided section with a continuous center left-turn lane in urban areas. In June 2001, a third Limited Public Meeting was held for the town of Jones Creek to present a refined alignment of SH 36 through Jones Creek based on comments received from the April 2001 public meetings. The Environmental Assessment is 100% complete. The PS&E and ROW are 30% complete.Map/Location
Evalutation Questions - Major Investments
Benefit/Cost Methodology
Please attach the completed BCA Excel worksheet and narrative explanation of analyses used