Special to El Rrun-Rrun
Here they go again.
For the next 14 months expect to see construction crews on Boca Chica Boulevard from Expressway 77/83 to International Boulevard as the Texas Department of Transportation begins installing medians on the boulevard.
The aim of the $3 million project, which covers 1.5 miles, will be to install raised medians and sidewalks, and perhaps – if we know out city commission – might even include a bike lane.
In other words, it will narrow the boulevard and make left turns almost impossible unless you go to the next traffic light and wait for the left turn signal and make a U-turn.
But, of course, TxDOT spokesman Octavio Saenz.said the changes should improve traffic flow on one of the city’s busiest boulevards. He said some lane closures could occur as the project progresses. A public meeting on the project was held in 2018, and officials said the medians would enhance safety, reduce congestion and improve mobility on the roadway.
But we're sure that if the participants – if there were any – had no idea what the result would be. If you want to see what the "improvements" to Boca Chica will be simply go to the section of FM 802 (Ruben Torres) between Expressway 77/83 and Robindale Road and there you have it.
That road has been narrowed with those medians and unless you spot a turnoff to the other side you have to drive past your destination on the left and continue to the next traffic light before you can turn around and get there. Has anyone figured the hours of delays that has created?
Saenz said Boca Chica Boulevard is ranked 93rd out of 100 congested roads in the state. Somehow or another they figure that the annual hours of delay per mile is 186,259 while the annual congestion cost is $5,531,648. How they came up with those figures only MPO guru Mark Lund would understand.
The project calls for full median openings at Paredes Line Road, Old Port Isabel Road, Strawberry Square, King Highways and Security Drive. A directional median opening will be on North Street.
The project also calls for the removal of traffic lights at Simpson Street — in front of the H-E-B store on Boca Chica Boulevard — and at Los Amigos Plaza and Home Depot Intersections.
The project also calls for the removal of traffic lights at Simpson Street — in front of the H-E-B store on Boca Chica Boulevard — and at Los Amigos Plaza and Home Depot Intersections.
Whatever justifications they want to ascribe to the project, the result will be a narrowing of the boulevard and a restriction on left turns which TxDOT believes are anathema to efficient circulation. It ain't your grandma's Boca Chica anymore.
12 comments:
There were previously lane wide medians on the same section of Boca Chica. I don't know why they were removed. It will be interesting to see how the new medians effect the hydrology. We will no longer be able to move to the center of the road to escape deep standing water.
If the action isn't downtown, the City Commission doesn't care. Trey Mendez, like Tony Martinez, has put all his efforts downtown. The rest of us just pay taxes and hope we don't hit a pothole, or if we call 911 the police will come.
I heard that they were going to start during easter holiday and than stop and start during 4th of july holiday and stop and start during thanksgiving holiday and stop and resume during xmas and new years. This routine will take approx 5 years to finish just like over at corpus it took them 50 years to complete an overpass on 77/44 highway. The state hired the county engineers that came over from brownsville.. GOOD LUCK
more negative stuff, as usual from a ghost writer.
The traffic department cant even syncronize the traffic lights on eagle drive when there is no school!
I went to that meeting and the majority of people said, it's a big mistake. Why fix something that is not broken? The people were opposed to these changes on boca chica Blvd. Brownsville is falling apart in all 4 sectors with the stupidity of bike and hike trails. Our mayor is basically an idiot and those monkees of commissioners are so blind and been stupid is a plus to their blindness of this project to make drivers and those business on boca chica Blvd a living nightmare. Brownsville a city of garbage, no more, no less.
January 3, 2020 at 4:10 PM
Its not negative pendejo its call the truth baboso
Paint the white stripes on alton gloor and 802 you can't see them at night and just barely during the day. Bike trails are not that important nobody uses them. Quite sucking up and do your job paint the white stripes on these roads. One serious accident and we'll see everybody in court.
Gonna buy a couple of flood lights and install them on top of my truck to see them white stripes on those streets at night. Get with it brownsville do your job where its needed.
When they get all done they should change the name to space X Blvd.
Name it baldy or mchairless or Fronton Blvd.
We used to go fish at la boca del rio and catch reds, whites and sometimes yellows...
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