Listen
This weekend, crews will start tearing down the FM 646 overpass over the Gulf Freeway in League City, as part of a bigger project to widen I-45 South.
The interchange will be totally rebuilt, and when it's finished, I-45 will cross over FM 646.
"We've looked at the data over the years," said TxDOT spokesman Danny Perez. "It shows that traffic significantly improves once you have traffic flowing on the main lanes over the roadway rather than traveling under it."
Perez pointed out that another problem they have at the interchange is traffic backing up onto the freeway main lanes.
"It's disrupting the flow when you have the bell curve there," said Perez. "You have the traffic trying to flow over the main lanes. You have the main lane traffic trying to get where it needs to go. So taking out those bell curves and improving traffic flow, it's definitely going to be a win-win."
Until the new interchange is complete, traffic on FM 646 will be detoured to the frontage road. Westbound traffic will take the I-45 northbound frontage road to State Highway 96, make a U-turn, and then travel back to 646 on the southbound frontage road.
Eastbound drivers on 646 will take the I-45 southbound frontage road to FM 517, make a U-turn and then travel on the northbound frontage road back to 646.
There will also be closures on the Gulf Freeway this weekend. From 9:00 PM Friday until midnight Saturday, TxDOT will have two northbound lanes closed between FM 517 to FM 646.
The interchange reconstruction project is expected to last about six months. TxDOT said the contractor has incentives to finish the project by this fall.
Beginning on Friday, March 1 at 9 pm, the FM 646 bridge at I-45 will be permanently closed. In addition, two I-45 NB mainlanes from FM 517 to FM 646 will be closed on Fri, March 1, at 9 pm until midnight on Sat, March 2. Get more information at https://t.co/WwQlcPBwxc. pic.twitter.com/G8GwpLKfcS
— TxDOT- HOU District (@TxDOTHouston) February 25, 2019
