TxDOT to fund toll road links
A project to build northbound and southbound connectors from U.S. Expressway 77/83 to the future SH 550 toll road has received $25.5 million from the Texas Department of Transportation.
The connectors will be developed where SH 550 meets Expressway 77/83 at North Olmito Road. The funding for the Cameron County Regional Mobility Authority project comes from TxDOT’s Pass Through Financing Program, which will reimburse the CCRMA each year to service the debt on the money CCRMA borrowed for construction.
CCRMA officials say the connector project will improve mobility, provide a safer route for the movement of goods and services between the United States and Mexico, and help air quality by reducing emissions. CCRMA chairman David Allex said the project would improve connectivity with the foreign trade zones associated with the Port of Brownsville and the Brownsville South Padre Island International Airport.
Cameron County Administrator Pete Sepulveda Jr. said applying for the TxDOT grant was extremely competitive.
"There was only $250 million available and I believe there was $600 million in requests," he said. "We were in a statewide competition with other RMAs, counties and cities around the state. I knew we had a good shot because our project was environmentally cleared, the right-of-way was in place, and the design was complete. Anytime you have those three things, you a have a huge edge."
The next step before moving ahead on construction is to sign an agreement with TxDOT, which should take 90 to 120 days, Sepulveda said. The CCRMA recently opened an overpass over Paredes Line Road that will be part of the overall toll road project, while a 3.5 mile spur from SH 48 to SH 511 on Alton Gloor Boulevard should be complete in the next 18 months, Sepulveda said.
"Then with the connectors in place the only thing pending will be the two main toll lines from Alton Gloor back to the Expressway," he said. "That will complete the configuration."
The whole thing should be fully operational in the next 24 months, Sepulveda said. Next up on the CCRMA’s to-do list is the East Loop project, which is fully funded but still in the environmental assessment phase, he said. The East Loop will provide a new connection from the Veterans International Bridge at Los Tomates to the Port of Brownsville, eventually rerouting commercial traffic off the current SH 48 route.
"I’m hoping to be able to begin the right-of-way way acquisition process and in about 18 months that should be under construction," Sepulveda said.
