UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE JOHN CULBERSON

Energy Houston Magazine

Fall 2002

Help is on the way to open up the Katy Freeway

By Representative John Culberson

Every employer in west Houston or whose employees live in west Houston should know that relief is right around the corner for the Katy Freeway. Expanding the Katy Freeway is my top local legislative priority, so I want to give you several pieces of good news about our west Houston transportation disaster zone.

The most important piece of good news is that we have finally focused the full attention of every elected official in west Houston on the Katy Freeway. This really matters because bureaucrats now find it very difficult to dodge, delay, hide, or make excuses. The expansion project is now acknowledged to be the highest transportation priority in southeast Texas at every level of government--county, state, and federal.

Since the Katy Freeway is part of the national Interstate highway system, there is a significant federal role in the process. The project is the largest and most expensive transportation project in Texas history, with a total cost estimate of $1.2 billion.

My crusade to rebuild the Katy Freeway as fast as humanly possible began in 1997 when I was a member of the Texas House of Representatives. While this has been a priority of mine for five years, I have seen a tremendous amount of progress this past year since I came to Congress in January 2001. When I first arrived in Washington, I immediately declared the Katy Freeway my top legislative priority in Houston, and I pushed for and gained the support of key leadership officials in the U.S. Congress including Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison and Representative Tom DeLay.

In November, as a sign of our commitment to the project, Congress earmarked $7 million in the final Transportation Appropriations Bill for the project--a direct result of Mr. DeLay`s successful negotiations in the Appropriations Committee mark-up.

Local support began in April when the Texas Transportation Commission unanimously decided to begin negotiations with the Harris County Toll Road Authority to determine the feasibility of creating four toll lanes down the center of the Katy Freeway. Then to add to our good news, in August Governor Rick Perry announced his request that the Texas Transportation Commission accelerate funding for expansion of the Katy Freeway. Both actions prove that we have lined up support from the key leadership officials in the State of Texas.

It continued on December 18, 2001, when the Harris County Commissioner`s Court unanimously passed a resolution ensuring that the Harris County Tollroad Authority (HCTRA) would not enter into any agreement with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDoT) to construct any part of the I-10 expansion unless the agreement provides assurances that the Greater Houston Metropolitan Area will receive no less federal or state funding than it would have had the HCTRA not partially funded the project.

Our second piece of good news is that with focus and teamwork at all levels, we anticipate completing our freeway project way ahead of schedule. In order to do so, we will take two approaches.

First, I will do whatever is necessary to complete the Katy Freeway expansion rapidly, using a 24 hour, 7 day a week work schedule comparable to the record breaking work that was done to complete the Pierce Elevated in downtown Houston and the expansion of I-15 in Salt Lake City.

Officials in Salt Lake City were told it would take 8 to 10 years to complete a similar major expansion of I-15, but federal, state, and local officials worked together to finish that huge project in four years. TxDoT can count on me to help them match Utah`s performance on I-15, and to help them match their own standard set by the Pierce Elevated.

I have also recommended that officials use monetary incentives for on-time and early completion of the project similar to those used during the building of the Pierce Elevated. The Pierce Elevated was a huge project that was done with great success mainly because of the cooperation between local officials and contractors. Built into the contract for the construction companies were numerous bonuses based on how fast the contractor could finish the job. For every day ahead of schedule, workers would receive extra compensation. As a result of these incentives, the contractor received the largest bonus in TxDoT history for finishing the project ahead of schedule.

Second, I am pushing hard to implement Judge Robert Eckels` toll road option. His proposal will help develop and expand west Houston`s main street in record breaking time. It would give drivers a choice to either pay a toll to reach their destinations more quickly or to use the existing lanes without paying a toll. It would also generate the remaining $500 million ($250 million in bonds and $250 million from toll revenue) needed for construction.

The original estimates for the completion of the project were 10-12 years, but with the toll road option, the time is cut in half to six years. The project will also use what is coined as a design-build process. The traditional system of design-bid-build has been used for many years. It is based on the assumption that the owner can have the design plans before bidding out the construction on a project to the lowest bidder. Many projects could be more cost-effective if they could be implemented faster, that caused the evolution of design-build approach.

The design-build system eliminates some of the conflict of having the designer and the builder compete for prospective funds, by combining the two entities it allows for timely communication and creates a point of singular responsibility. This project will be so successful that other parts of the country will want to use the west Houston`s main corridor as a model for expansion projects in the future.

When other states construct transportation projects, they will point to west Houston`s main street as an example of success.

The third piece of good news is I am pushing to have dirt moved by the end of 2002. When dirt begins to turn, drivers will first see construction beginning at the I-10 / 610 Interchange and will see the relocation of the utility lines North of the Freeway to make room for the expansion. These will be the first signs of future relief from congestion.

Right-of-way is also an important part of making our expansion project a success. During the construction of the freeway, we will make every effort to build the highway without disrupting traffic. The contractor will build the first section of the highway on newly broken ground to keep the existing lanes running. Then when the new section is complete, the contractor will allow traffic to use the new lanes while the old ones are being repaired. I have demanded that during construction there will always be three lanes in each direction for drivers on the Katy Freeway.

West Houston employees can rest assured that I will continue hammering officials to expand I-10 feeder roads. I have asked TxDoT to commit to Houstonians that they will keep at least three lanes open at all times in both directions during construction. West of Highway 6, I have asked TxDoT to first expand Westheimer and Kingsland on the south side, and Park Row and Clay Road on the north, before they begin work on the main lanes. East of Highway 6, I have asked that they expand the feeder roads first to minimize the impact on local residents and businesses.

The transportation woes of Houston do not end with the Katy Freeway. In June, I was appointed to the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in the House of Representatives. This position allows me to have a direct influence on local transportation projects from a federal level. As a member of this committee, I am working to accelerate construction of I-69 corridor around the city of Houston using Grand Parkway.

I am also working to pass legislation dedicated to truck toll lanes, and require trucks moving through Houston to use I-69 to further ease congestion. I want to get trucks off the west Houston`s main street and make them travel around the city to make our city roads safer. I will also increase railroad use to further eliminate trucks from using our streets.

The Katy Freeway is west Houston`s main street, and it deserves the full time attention of every one of us who suffer through its daily traffic jams. We have great schools, safe streets, and a strong economy in west Houston, but I-10 is choking out economic growth and taking away from us irreplaceable hours with our families and our children.

Traffic on west Houston`s main street is a nightmare, but be assured that I will continue to do everything in my power as a United States Congressman to expand the Katy Freeway as fast as humanly possible.

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