Traffic Improvements Are Coming!

I believe we can all agree that improving mobility and reducing congestion is THE challenge in managing the continuing growth and economic development within The Woodlands. We need to make certain our transportation infrastructure is viewed as being equally "excellent" as the rest of our community.  

I want to bring you up to date on recent decision the Township Board took to help reduce delays and traffic delays over the next 18-24 months. In approving the Short Term Mobility Project, the Board joined in partnership with the County and the Woodlands Road Utility District #1 (WRUD) to implement improvements in over 50 road intersections and signals throughout the Township. Improperly designed and timed intersections are the biggest contributors to congestion. The traffic engineers estimate these improvements will reduce intersection delay time by at least 15-20%. These improvements were selected based on traffic surveys and studies performed both by the County and the WRUD.  

The Short Term Mobility Project illustrates what can be accomplished when all of us come together for the common good of our community.  Overall this project constitutes a $19 million investment, most of which will be funded by the WRUD and the commercial property owners.  The County will be investing approximately  $1.8 million in the project. The Township's investment will be focused in two areas:

1) Improving signalization through the use of the new Adaptive Signal Technology where it makes the most sense ($1.225 million).

2) Participating ($200,000) in determining the most practical solution to constructing grade separations at Lake Woodlands/ Grogans Mill and Research Forest/ Grogans Mill. All three entities recognize the sensitivity of any changes at the Research Forest/ Grogans Mill intersection. We also have to make sure the Lake Woodlands/ Grogans Mill project does not create problems for the Church and surrounding businesses. We have all pledged that the project teams will evaluate all the possible solutions in these areas and engage the surrounding businesses and residents in obtaining their input before any solution is cast in stone. But first, the engineering teams need to determine what are the alternatives and the pros and cons of each.

These projects will now move into the detail design and bid phase. No actual construction work will begin until the SJRA project is largely completed, April 2014.  We expect these improvements will be implemented over the next 18-24 months. 

These short term mobility improvements are not candidates for federal and state matching funds. Thus,  a list of long term improvement projects have also been submitted to the South County Mobility Study Team for consideration in the plan currently being developed. These recommendations include the widening of Gosling and Kuykendahl, and their respective bridges. These are significant congestion problems today and deserve to be considered a very high priority for our community.

Businesses and residents will have an opportunity to provide their input on the SC Mobility Study recommendations and proposed projects when the time comes. The Short Term Mobility Project is designed to produce more immediate benefits while the longer term plans are being developed.