AASHTO Journal - TxDOT Issues Draft of $104B 10-Year Transportation Plan

The Texas Department of Transportation recently released the draft of a $104.2 billion decade-long transportation plan for the Lone Star state and is now soliciting public feedback on the proposed projects encapsulated within it.

[Above image by TxDOT]

The agency said the draft of its 2025 Unified Transportation Program or UTP – a plan that is updated annually – provides a “road map” to outline key transportation projects statewide that improve safety, address congestion and connectivity, plus preserve roadways for motorists. The UTP also addresses public transportation, maritime, aviation, rail, freight and international trade, plus bicycle and pedestrian connectivity.

The agency noted that it will accept public feedback on the 2025 edition of the UTP through August 5.

“The UTP serves as TxDOT’s strategic 10-year blueprint for advancing projects statewide,” noted Marc Williams, TxDOT’s executive director, in a statement. “Collaborating with our transportation partners and communities ensures that we continue connecting you with Texas while prioritizing safety, delivery, innovation, and stewardship.”

In a separate statement, TxDOT noted that it continues to work on solutions to address traffic congestion at the U.S.-Mexico border to help the flow of goods between the two countries.

“Border crossing volumes for commercial vehicles are forecast to increase significantly between 2019 and 2050, with transportation demand surpassing capacity,” said Caroline Mays, TxDOT’s director of planning and modal programs.

“Border delays are the top-cited issue for stakeholders,” Mays stressed. “If no operational efficiency and system capacity improvements are made, delays are forecast to grow exponentially.”

In 2019, around five million commercial vehicles crossed the Texas-Mexico border, TxDOT said; a number expected to rise to more than 12 million by 2050.

The impact of the growth in freight traffic could be significant, the agency warned. For example, the average wait time for commercial vehicles at the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge in 2019 was one hour.

Without improvements, that wait time is projected to increase to more than 13 hours by 2050, which could lead to economic losses of $75 billion for the United States and $41 billion for Mexico, TxDOT said.

In order to address such challenges, TxDOT’s Border Transportation Master Plan includes 559 projects with an estimated cost of more than $32 billion. To date, the agency said 185 of those freight projects have already been fully funded with more than $5 billion. Those projects are also expected to reduce border crossing times by 60 percent, TxDOT noted.