Transportation Project Questionnaire

Major Projects Questionnaire

Project Information

Agency Name	TxDOT Houston District
Project Title	SH 35 New Location
Facility/Street/Highway	SH 35
Limits	From SH 99 to BS 35C South
Description	CONSTRUCT 4 LANE FREEWAY ON NEW LOCATION - The proposed project will add four mainlanes on new location.
Timeframe	Long Term (More than 10 Years)
Estimated Cost	$80,920,000.00

Regional Transportation Plan Goals

1. Please provide narrative describing how the proposed project supports all goals established in the Regional Transportation Plan (2045 RTP).

This project will construct a new roadway which will act as an alternative if main lanes (future frontage roads) are shut down on other facilities. According to the H-GAC 2045 RTP, projects falling under the Expand strategy directly support two of H-GAC’s goals: moving people and goods efficiently and strengthening regional economic competitiveness. Expand projects also indirectly advance H-GAC’s goals of improving safety, achieving a state of good repair, and protecting cultural and natural resources. [1] Improve Safety: This project will provide additional capacity to the roadway network and reduce primary and secondary crashes caused by congestion. [2] Achieve & Maintain State of Good Repair: This project will add pavement in Good condition, improving the overall number of lane miles in Good condition. [3] Move People and Goods Reliably and Efficiently: This project will reduce congestion by providing an alternative facility, and reduce resulting crashes, increasing the reliability of the network. [4] Strengthen Regional Economic Competitiveness: This project will reduce congestion by providing an alternative facility, and reduce resulting crashes, increasing the truck travel time reliability of the facility, boosting regional and economic competitiveness. [5] Conserve and Protect Natural and Cultural Resources: This project will include improved drainage that will meet or exceed ATLAS 14 standards, which will benefit the natural resources abutting the facility. This project will reduce emissions caused by idling and congestion. Sound walls will be considered for this project as well if they meet criteria.

Regional Significance

1. Is the project a Roadway Project or a Transit Project?

Roadway

1a. For Roadway projects, this project is located on a facility functionally classified as a:

Principal Arterial or Higher Functional Class

Potential Crash Reductions

1. What is the existing fatality crash rate at the project location? Regional crash data is available online at crash data viewer. H-GAC staff will provide assistance in calculating the crash rates upon request.

2.861

2. What is the existing serious injury crash rate at the project location? Regional crash data is available online at crash data viewer. H-GAC staff will provide assistance in calculating the crash rates upon request.

7.153

3. Please provide a narrative explaining how the proposed project reduces expected fatality and serious injury crashes. Narrative must include specific improvements (work types) included in the project scope. Crash reduction factors associated with specific work types can be found in the safety benefits calculation template. H-GAC staff can provide assistance in gathering the crash reduction factors upon request.

Crash rates for this segment are per 100 million VMT. The fatality rate is 2.861, higher than the regional average (1.23), and the serious injury rate is 7.153, higher than the regional average (6.18). This project will construct new intersection improvements in the form of grade separations (Work Code 514) at multiple intersections along these project limits. A new median barrier (Work Code 201) could be constructed as well on the new lanes.

Potential Congestion Reductions

1. Is the project located on a facility listed on Texas 100 most congested roads list?

1b. If no, please provide the existing peak period travel time index (TTI) of the facility where proposed project is located.

1.0 – 1.25

1b-i. Provide a narrative describing the existing congestion where proposed project is located and describe narrative to explain methodology to calculate existing TTI.

Travel Time Index (TTI) is a ratio that compares peak period travel times along a corridor to average travel times, thus estimating a relative level of rush hour congestion. Current TTI for the project area is 1.09, indicating that it takes 1.09 times as long to travel this corridor in the peak period than average, which is mildly congested.

2. Please provide a narrative explaining how the proposed project reduces congestion. Narrative must include specific improvements (work types) included in the project scope.

This project will construct 4 main lanes in the wide median to address congestion, these main lanes will also include grade separations over signalized intersections, thus improving traffic flow and improving air quality. The segment will be brought up to TxDOT and FHWA safety design standards. These main lanes might eventually be reclassified to frontage roads for SH 99 Segment B main lanes (especially near the railroad grade separation crossing.

Connectivity to Jobs, Medical Facilities, and Activity Centers

1. Does the proposed project improve or provide new connectivity to jobs within a 1/4 mile buffer of the project location?

Yes

1a. Please provide the number of jobs located within 1/4 mile distance of the project.

6,147

2. Does the proposed project improve or provide new connectivity to a medical facility within a 1/4 mile buffer of the project location?

Yes

3. Does the proposed project improve or provide new connectivity to an activity center within a 1/4 mile buffer of the project location?

Yes

4. Provide narrative describing how proposed project improves or provides new connectivity to jobs, medical facilities, and activity centers.

This project will increase access and connectivity to the area. The Alvin Community College campus is next to this corridor, providing job training among other classes. The Nolan Ryan Community Center is also next to this project and there is a Texas Department of Health and Human Services Office near the Mustang Rd Intersection at SH 35. An HCA Houston ER 24/7 - Alvin is located next to this project, a private urgent care clinic (Affinity Urgent Care) is located in the shopping mall next to this project, and a Dialysis Center is nearby too. A YMCA is nearby as well for maintaining good health and exercise. A grocery store (Kroger) is next to this project as well preventing a food desert.

State of Good Repair

1. What is the age of the facility where proposed project is located?

48 years

2. What is the existing condition of the facility.

Fair

3. Please explain how the project improves state of good repair and extends the service life of the facility.

The pavement on this segment is mostly in Good condition, according to TxDOT and FHWA guidelines. The project segment contains 2 bridges in Fair condition. The worst bridge on this project segment was built in 1976. It is rated as being in Good condition overall, with a superstructure condition score of 8, substructure condition score of 7, and a deck condition score of 8. In a widening/reconstruction project like this project, pavement is removed and new pavement is constructed, thus increasing the state of good repair and extending the service life of the facility.

Biking and Walking Conditions

1. Please provide a narrative explaining how the proposed project improves walking and biking conditions. Within the narrative, please explain if the proposed project scope includes construction of new or improve existing bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure on project facility or in the vicinity of the project.

No sidewalks will be constructed on this project, this is main lanes construction. Some sidewalks already exist on portions of the future frontage roads (existing SH 35). It is TxDOT’s policy to balance out roadway projects with bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure improvements in the region of the facility as possible.

Impacts to Vulnerable Populations

1. Please enter the Low-Income household population located within 1/4 buffer of the project location. H-GAC staff can assist in gathering the data.

6,769

2. Please enter the Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Minorities household population located within 1/4 buffer of the project location. H-GAC staff can assist in gathering the data.

8,234

3. Please enter the Household Population Under Poverty located within 1/4 buffer of the project location. H-GAC staff can assist in gathering the data.

2,003

4. Please enter the Disabled Persons household population located within 1/4 buffer of the project location. H-GAC staff can assist in gathering the data.

961

5. Please enter the Elderly Persons household population located within 1/4 buffer of the project location. H-GAC staff can assist in gathering the data.

712

6. Please enter the Limited English Proficiency household population located within 1/4 buffer of the project location. H-GAC staff can assist in gathering the data.

1,122

7. What is the average Livable Center Need Index within 1/4 buffer of the project location? H-GAC staff can assist in gathering the data.

34.8

8. Please provide a narrative explaining how the proposed project provides benefits to vulnerable populations (benefits include safety improvements, or construction or improvements to ped/bike facilities, or improvements to transit stops.

9. Please provide a narrative explaining how the proposed project avoids or mitigates adverse effects to vulnerable populations. List of adverse effects was provided in detailed criteria document.

The area surrounding the project segment has a higher low-income population (14.27%) as compared to the regional average of 13.5%. The area surrounding the project segment has a lower minority population (59.57%) as compared to the regional average of 65% minority. TxDOT’s NEPA Environmental Process is designed to ensure compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Executive Order on Environmental Justice. Standard practice is to implement projects that provide user safety and operational efficiency while taking into account environmental quality and impacts to surrounding communities. In practice this means identifying and assessing potential project impacts, then proposing measures to avoid, minimize and/or mitigate disproportionately high and adverse effects to Environmental Justice Populations. For example, the project will improve drainage to ATLAS-14 standards, which will mitigate impacts from added capacity to vulnerable populations. A noise analysis for sound walls will be considered during the NEPA process on these types of projects and will be constructed if criteria are met for them.