| Fort Bend Parkway Toll Road |
Article Index for Fort Bend |
Website Links For Fort Bend |
Information AboutFort Bend Parkway Toll Road |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT FORT BEND PARKWAY TOLL ROAD | |
| toll roads in texas | |
| transportation in houston | |
| harris county, texas | |
| fort bend county, texas | |
|
The Fort Bend Parkway Toll Road connects State Highway 6 in eastern Fort Bend County to US 90A in southwestern Harris County , planned to reach a northern terminus at Interstate 610 in the near future. The toll road has two lanes in each direction with major interchanges at Highway 6, Lake Olympia Parkway and FM 2234. A main toll plaza is located north of FM 2234 with ramp tollbooths at FM 2234 and Lake Olympia Parkway. The cost for the Parkway is estimated between $55 million and $60 million. The Harris County Toll Road Authority (HCTRA) administered segment of the road, which extends from just south of Beltway 8 at the county line to US 90A, uses the authority's purple pentagonal shield and is referred to as the '''Fort Bend Toll Road'''. HISTORY In November 2000, Fort Bend County citizens overwhelmingly approved a $140 million bond issue to support revenue bond financing for construction of the Parkway and Westpark projects. After fulfilling prudent feasibility studies and careful planning, FBCTRA broke ground and began the construction phase in July 2003. The Fort Bend Parkway Toll Road opened August 30, 2004. The tollway's origins date back to TxDOT's (Texas Department of Transportation) original proposal of building a highway from the southwest corner of Loop 610 in Houston, Texas (where North Braeswood and 610 meet). A section of frontage roads (later part of Hillcroft Avenue in Houston) were constructed in the late 1960s/early 1970s (date unknown) south of the proposed Beltway 8 ( Sam Houston Tollway ) south of Harris County adjacent to the Chasewood and Willow Park II subdivisions in northeast Fort Bend County. Originally planned as either the West Loop Extension or the Bay City Expressway, the proposed freeway was cancelled in 1979 although remnants of the freeway exist (an extension of South Post Oak between West Bellfort and North/South Braeswood, along with a section of the Fort Bend Tollway between Beltway 8 and West Fuqua in Fort Bend County). Although the 1979 cancellation has ended TxDOT's highway proposal, Fort Bend County had an interest in the roadway project since 1984. REFERENCES |
|
|