US 90 Alternate Freeway

[JLWM8609]

I was driving back from Richmond, TX today and decided to take the scenic route back to Riverside Terrace, that is to take U.S. 90A all the way back as if it is prior to 1961 and the SW Freeway has not been built. I'd taken the stretch last week to check out construction. From Richmond to Highway 6, the highway is still in its 4 lane divided configuration. Once you pass Highway 6, there's some construction going on to widen it to an 8 lane boulevard. Last week, westbound traffic was still using the original 1934 bridge over Oyster Creek in front of the old Imperial Sugar mill. Today, westbound traffic had been diverted to the newer late 1940's former eastbound bridge. Eastbound traffic was on a new structure over the creek. I assume the 1934 bridge is to be demolished soon, the plaques with the year it was built and other info had been removed (what the construction companies did with it, I don't know). There's a few s-curves between Ulrich Rd. and BW 8 diverting traffic onto and off of new and old pavement. It appears in Stafford they're making portions of it a freeway, I'd even heard rumors that they were going to put part of it into a trench at Kirkwood or something like that, it had to do with the railroad crossing as well. Once you pass Willowridge HS, you enter the oldest section of the S. Main/US 90A freeway completed in 1996. Last week, traffic was still on the feeder roads all the way to S. Post Oak. All lanes of the new freeway are open from Stafford to the South Loop. No more traffic lights and crossovers, just smooth sailing at 65 mph, a far cry from just 5 years ago. Passed under 610 and hit the 8 lane boulevard, moving pretty good, then curved onto the 6 lane portion of US 90A known as OST right into Riverside Terrace which is now nice and smooth with new asphalt thanks to TxDOT (took em long enough, over a year from old surface removal to repaving!)

[Guest danax]

I was driving back from Richmond, TX today and decided to take the scenic route back to Riverside Terrace, that is to take U.S. 90A all the way back as if it is prior to 1961 and the SW Freeway has not been built. I'd taken the stretch last week to check out construction. From Richmond to Highway 6, the highway is still in its 4 lane divided configuration. Once you pass Highway 6, there's some construction going on to widen it to an 8 lane boulevard. Last week, westbound traffic was still using the original 1934 bridge over Oyster Creek in front of the old Imperial Sugar mill. Today, westbound traffic had been diverted to the newer late 1940's former eastbound bridge. Eastbound traffic was on a new structure over the creek. I assume the 1934 bridge is to be demolished soon, the plaques with the year it was built and other info had been removed (what the construction companies did with it, I don't know). There's a few s-curves between Ulrich Rd. and BW 8 diverting traffic onto and off of new and old pavement. It appears in Stafford they're making portions of it a freeway, I'd even heard rumors that they were going to put part of it into a trench at Kirkwood or something like that, it had to do with the railroad crossing as well. Once you pass Willowridge HS, you enter the oldest section of the S. Main/US 90A freeway completed in 1996. Last week, traffic was still on the feeder roads all the way to S. Post Oak. All lanes of the new freeway are open from Stafford to the South Loop. No more traffic lights and crossovers, just smooth sailing at 65 mph, a far cry from just 5 years ago. Passed under 610 and hit the 8 lane boulevard, moving pretty good, then curved onto the 6 lane portion of US 90A known as OST right into Riverside Terrace which is now nice and smooth with new asphalt thanks to TxDOT (took em long enough, over a year from old surface removal to repaving!)

Nice reporting. It'd be nice if they could erect some old style signage to indicate the old highway, sort of like on Route 66, just a small touch to give a few of us a sense of history amid the constant changes.

C'mon, Houston/TxDOT, use your imagination.

[JLWM8609]

It would be nice to see them do that. After all, they do it on sections of the South Loop and SH225 to designate the Texas Independence Trail.

[JLWM8609]

Here's a small photo essay, all photos start westward and move eastward along the alignment. They were taken between December 24, 2005 and March 23, 2007.

Beginning in the Richmond vicinity just east of the Brazos River. Still very rural looking along this particular stretch.

Eastbound bridge over small creek, built in late 40's.

A look across the bridge shows one of the original bridges from around 1934. It was originally built to serve two way traffic in the highway's early days, now serving westbound traffic.

After we cross Highway 6, we enter Sugar Land. Here, a small section of pavement to handle 4 lanes in each direction has been laid down, but is only striped for two.

Here's some views of the 1934 bridge over Oyster Creek. The first photo was taken in October of 2006.

This photo was taken just last week. The bridge no longer carries traffic and will be demolished soon.

Looking towards the west in Sugar Land

Approaching US 59

Here's the new freeway section from last week. The westbound lanes were open by then, but the eastbound lanes were not opened up until earlier this week.

The S. Post Oak overpass pictured here has been complete and open to traffic since late last year I believe.

OST in Houston, newly repaved.

Produce Row Overpass, I'm guessing the road overpass was built in the late 50's or early 60's. The railroad bridge looks older though, possibly mid 30's?

I need to fill in some gaps, such as near the South Loop/Reliant area, and Stafford.

Edited March 24, 2007 by JLWM8609

[connie]

I am moving in Houston and looking for a house in Sugarland area. I have a question about the traffic on Main st(90A) which is connecting Toll road and 610. Is it horrible in the peak time?

Thanks

[musicman]

they are upgrading s main which will improve the situation greatly. but last time i was out there the construction was still ongoing.

[connie]

thanks, I traveled there a few days ago, it seems there are no traffic lights on the 90 connecting the toll road and 610.It looks like a freeway. No traffic at that time but that day is holiday.

Thanks

they are upgrading s main which will improve the situation greatly. but last time i was out there the construction was still ongoing.

[musicman]

thanks, I traveled there a few days ago, it seems there are no traffic lights on the 90 connecting the toll road and 610.It looks like a freeway. No traffic at that time but that day is holiday.

Thanks

plans were also in work to make s post oak a toll road as well....that should be another plus for you if that comes to fruition

[JLWM8609]

plans were also in work to make s post oak a toll road as well....that should be another plus for you if that comes to fruition

S. Post Oak itself is not going to become a toll road, only parts of it will. The current freeway section south of 610 that was built in 1986 is going to be extended to the current Fort Bend Tollroad by snaking through the surrounding neighborhood. The plans for US 90A are for it to be a semi-freeway from 610 to Stafford (it's not a full freeway because it has no shoulders and driveway access). It will have an at-grade intersection at Present Rd though. Through Stafford, there will be overpasses at S. Gessner, Kirkwood, Murphy Rd., and an overpass will be built to connect Staffordshire Rd. to Stafford Rd. The overpasses at Gessner and Kirkwood should be open in a few months. With the exception of the overpasses between Promenade Blvd. and Present St. (Murphy Rd. and Staffordshire/Stafford overpasses), the widening project to Hwy 6 should be complete by March.

[musicman]

The current freeway section south of 610 that was built in 1986 is going to be extended to the current Fort Bend Tollroad by snaking through the surrounding neighborhood.

that's the upgrade i was talking about.

[JLWM8609]

that's the upgrade i was talking about.

Plans eventually call for the highway to be called "SH122" and run all the way to Bay City. It's been on the books since 1961, killed by the planners at the highway department in 1979, and resurrected a few years ago. I wonder how they plan to take it down S. Post Oak before it jogs over to S.Main and Chimney Rock to join the current section? Maybe cantilever it over S. Post Oak? The ROW is kind of tight there, and I know the residents of Westbury aren't gonna be too happy about a new freeway for a neighbor.

[GovernorAggie]

Plans eventually call for the highway to be called "SH122" and run all the way to Bay City. It's been on the books since 1961, killed by the planners at the highway department in 1979, and resurrected a few years ago. I wonder how they plan to take it down S. Post Oak before it jogs over to S.Main and Chimney Rock to join the current section? Maybe cantilever it over S. Post Oak? The ROW is kind of tight there, and I know the residents of Westbury aren't gonna be too happy about a new freeway for a neighbor.

I think it's just gonna plow through there. Remember, this is HCTRA's project, so Westbury residents may as well just be complaining to a brick wall. IMO, public involvement may be non-existent at its worst and begrudgingly sparse at best. Hopefully, they may at least reconfigure the street to where S. Post Oak acts as feeders to the new tollway.

Edited January 8, 2008 by GovernorAggie

[JLWM8609]

When TxDOT completed the upgrade of S. Main from Holmes to BW8 from a four lane divided highway with a 45 mph speed limit, to a 6 lane mini freeway with a 55 mph speed limit, I was surprised when I saw only a curb and a grassy median separating the WB and EB lanes. I figured if TxDOT would be adding lanes, eliminating all crossovers, raising speed limits, and bringing a rural style highway to urban standards, they'd surely add a barrier as they did with the section from 610 to Holmes. I immediately thought of the original 1948 Gulf Freeway, which had a similar configuration to this particular section of S. Main. That configuration lasted until motorists were hurt and killed in crossover accidents. Barriers were installed in the 1950s in response to those accidents. I knew it would only be a matter of time before a crossover accident occurred on that section of S. Main, and it did this weekend when a Bellaire student and a M.D. Anderson nurse were killed.

Maybe now, that section will get concrete barriers, or perhaps cable median barriers like the ones seen on rural freeways and on non-freeway divided highways in Austin?

[rsb320]

IMO, TXDOT needs an upheaval moreso than HOU-METRO. Annise, get Bill up in thar and gitter done.

It's like none of the road planners have reviewed past safety hazards. Shameful!

Sad to lose a valuable heathcare worker and future shining star.

[TheNiche]

Sad to lose a valuable heathcare worker and future shining star.

Wow, you really boil it down. Two human lives are merely money-in-the-bank and a nebula.

Maybe now, that section will get concrete barriers, or perhaps cable median barriers like the ones seen on rural freeways and on non-freeway divided highways in Austin?

The notion that it is acceptable to intentionally engineer dangerous conditions as a means of trying to get people to drive more slowly is known as "traffic calming". My position on the subject is that traffic calming is dumb...particularly in this context.

[JLWM8609]

The notion that it is acceptable to intentionally engineer dangerous conditions as a means of trying to get people to drive more slowly is known as "traffic calming". My position on the subject is that traffic calming is dumb...particularly in this context.

Hmmm, I never viewed the lack of barriers on a 55 mph freeway as a method of traffic calming. I'd always associated it with speed bumps and traffic circles on side streets, but I see where you're coming from.

[TheNiche]

Hmmm, I never viewed the lack of barriers on a 55 mph freeway as a method of traffic calming. I'd always associated it with speed bumps and traffic circles on side streets, but I see where you're coming from.

Those things had been around before the term "traffic calming" was coined. My professional exposure to the term typically was that the phrase is used by urbanists to justify on-street parking, minimal setbacks, blind corners, and a vegetative canopy over sidewalks.

Basically, the argument attempts to counter complaints from police, fire, EMS, and drivers that the ideal urban streetscapes create visibility problems that make them more dangerous for both drivers and pedestrians...by claiming the exact opposite...on account of that drivers will just naturally slow down if they perceive that it's more dangerous.

[Subdude]

That's all swell, but I think you're going off in a tangent. In this case I don't think anyone was using traffic calming measures to create an ideal urban streetscape along South Main. This just sounds like poor road design.

[TheNiche]

That's all swell, but I think you're going off in a tangent. In this case I don't think anyone was using traffic calming measures to create an ideal urban streetscape along South Main. This just sounds like poor road design.

No, I'm on-topic. There was an article somewhere or another that used the term "traffic calming" as a justification for the peculiar roadway engineering along this segment...I vaguely recall that it might've been Eric Slotboom or a source he quoted. I personally think that a more appropriate term to describe the construction of inadequate infrastructure might've been "gross financial mismanagement by TXDOT."

And obviously nobody intended to create an ideal urban streetscape along South Main, but then I did not claim that that was anybody's intent. If you would read things more carefully, you'd notice that I attached the qualifier "usually" to describe my professional experience with the term. And in an earlier post, I also mentioned that the application of traffic calming to this stretch of road was "particularly" dumb. If that's what you inferred as what I was trying to say, then...well, you must not think very highly of me.

Edited May 18, 2010 by TheNiche

[LTAWACS]

So... how can we get them to shore up this section of highway?

[JLWM8609]

So... how can we get them to shore up this section of highway?

I think some letters or calls to the district engineer of the Houston District of TxDOT would do the job.

Here's the Houston District contact page: http://txdot.gov/local_information/houston_district/contact_us.htm

Edited May 19, 2010 by JLWM8609

[Fringe]

I hate to take TexDot's side on this BUT even before they improved 90 and added the extra lane people were driving 50-60 mph. They eliminated all cross over traffic and turn areas except at major intersections is in it self a MAJOR improvement over how it once was. Yes the only thing separating traffic is an 8 foot grassy area but that's not really any different from many other major highways in the state. I'm betting there were far worse accidents before they improved 90 than there are now. In fact I know that for a fact because I have lived right off 90 for over 30 years now. They just didn't ever make the news. Lets not over-react to one tragic incident. 

[JLWM8609]

I hate to take TexDot's side on this BUT even before they improved 90 and added the extra lane people were driving 50-60 mph. They eliminated all cross over traffic and turn areas except at major intersections

Maybe in Stafford and in Sugar Land, but the section in question between BW8 and Holmes has grade separations at all major intersections.

Yes the only thing separating traffic is an 8 foot grassy area but that's not really any different from many other major highways in the state.

That's changing. Since 2003, TxDOT has placed cable median barriers along high speed highways with grassy medians of a certain width. I suspect S. Main would have received the same treatment had it not been upgraded.

Lets not over-react to one tragic incident. 

I don't think we're over reacting. Fatal accidents are inevitable, but it seems like this accident could have been prevented had TxDOT continued the median barrier onward from Holmes Road instead of just letting the barrier end at that point. It just seems odd that they would do such a thing with a modern road. Heck, even Memorial Drive's limited access section has barriers and it was completed in sections from 1955 to 1960.

[JLWM8609]

Looks like the lack of center barriers has garnered enough attention to merit an article in today's Houston Chronicle. I'd put a link up to it, but it's a print only article, meaning it probably won't be online until it's added to the archives.

To sum it up, TxDOT claims that despite the high speed limit and overpasses, S.Main is not a freeway but an urban arterial road and "well exceeds" design standards for urban arterial roads, according to TxDOT spokeswoman Raquelle Lewis. When asked why the section that runs from 610 to Holmes has a barrier and the other sections don't, Lewis answered that there is a wider right of way as the road progresses further out, which allows for a wider, "substantial buffer" (measuring 12-19 ft) between the two directions of traffic. Because of the width of the median, they have decided not to place barriers there. Last year, TxDOT considered putting guardrails or concrete barriers to the median, but the barriers would not qualify for safety funding based on the cost-benefit assessment.

Edited June 6, 2010 by JLWM8609

[Highrise Tower]

Highway 90 & Willowbend underpass.

 

I like the the positioning.

[Highrise Tower]

[JLWM8609]

15 hours ago, Highrise Tower said:

 

I wish I could find old pictures of what this area was like before the freeway. 

[hbcu]

nothing major...just a 4 lane road with a green median down the middle and a bunch of old motor hotels. The Fire Station was there and at Willowbend I think it was a Ice House called Vernells

Edited May 9, 2020 by hbcu

[Ross]

On 5/6/2020 at 11:10 AM, JLWM8609 said:

 

I wish I could find old pictures of what this area was like before the freeway. 

Not vastly different than now. There was a par 3 golf course at Main and Willowbend, but otherwise it was light industrial and empty space. A bigger contrast would be the area East of Stella Link just South of the Loop. That was a wasteland of crappy apartments and crack dealers in the 80's. Now, there's a bunch of townhomes instead of apartments, and the Weiner school and sports fields. In the 70's and early 80's I lived in several places in that area, one Summer in the apartments on Stella Link South of the gas station at the Loop, in apartments where the YMCA is now on Stella Link near Pershing MS, and South of Willowbend just East of Post Oak. I now wish I had taken general area photos of where I lived back then, but 20 somethings don't think like that.

[danielsonr]

17 minutes ago, Ross said:

Not vastly different than now. There was a par 3 golf course at Main and Willowbend, but otherwise it was light industrial and empty space. A bigger contrast would be the area East of Stella Link just South of the Loop. That was a wasteland of crappy apartments and crack dealers in the 80's. Now, there's a bunch of townhomes instead of apartments, and the Weiner school and sports fields. In the 70's and early 80's I lived in several places in that area, one Summer in the apartments on Stella Link South of the gas station at the Loop, in apartments where the YMCA is now on Stella Link near Pershing MS, and South of Willowbend just East of Post Oak. I now wish I had taken general area photos of where I lived back then, but 20 somethings don't think like that.

I know what you mean. I lived in the Fondren Southwest area in the 80’s and drove through this area on the way to downtown and other destinations and remember what it was like. At the time, Fondren Southwest was relatively upscale, with young professionals in all the apartments and townhomes. Then the bust of the mid 80’s hit, and the apartments emptied out and many homes and townhomes went into foreclosure. That area has never fully recovered from the bust. I wish I had photos of the area from that time as well.