Texas_State_Highway_550

Interstate 169 (Texas)

Interstate 169 (Texas)

Auxiliary Interstate Highway in Texas

Interstate 169 (I-169[lower-alpha 1]) is an auxiliary route of I-69E in Texas that currently runs from I-69E in Brownsville southeast concurrently with State Highway 550 (SH 550), a toll road under construction that connects to the Port of Brownsville for 1.5 miles (2.4 km). When SH 550 is complete, it will be a limited-access toll route around the northern and eastern edges of Brownsville and signed as I-169, partly replacing and expanding Farm to Market Road 511 (FM 511). Its purpose is to provide a new entry point for truck traffic to the Port of Brownsville and forming a loop that allows traffic to bypass the northern sections of the urbanized extent of the Brownsville city limits. This may serve as a relief route for future traffic congestion and as a future business corridor.

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Route description

I-169/SH 550 acts as a connector between I-69E/U.S. Highway 77 (US 77)/US 83 and the Port of Brownsville. The routes were constructed on the same routing as FM 511 from its connection with I-69E and US 77/US 83 southeastward to FM 3248. Only the stretch between the I-69E/US 77/US 83 interchange and Old Alice Road, however, is currently signed as I-169, and SH 550 is currently also incomplete, running along incomplete freeway segments and frontage roads.

Separated travel lanes, intended to be the frontage roads, were the first stage of construction from I-69E and US 77/US 83 to FM 3248. Flyover bridges have been constructed at FM 1847 and at two rail crossings. The second stage of construction built a new divided limited-access highway, which splits from FM 511 at FM 3248 and travels southeast to a new entry point for the Port of Brownsville, and a new crossover bridge at Old Port Isabel Road. The third stage that will complete the mainlanes on the stage-one portion and construct exit ramps directly to and from I-69E and US 77/US 83 at Olmito, began in March 2013.[3] The route is a toll route, but the second and third stages of the route are being funded with $36 million (equivalent to $49.7 million in 2023[4]) of funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.[5] According to local authorities in Cameron County, upon full completion, the route will be signed as I-169 as a spur route of I-69E.[6]

History

Previous designation

SH 550 was previously designated on May 22, 1947, from US 80 west of Fort Worth, eastward via Fort Worth and Dallas to US 67 and US 80 east of Dallas. On July 29, 1953, SH 550 was extended to SH 183. On September 25, 1953, SH 550 was extended north to White Settlement Road. On May 26, 1954, SH 550 was extended west to US 80, and the old route to White Settlement Road became a connection. On April 27, 1955, the connection of SH 550 was extended north from White Settlement Road to the entrance of the Convair Assembly Plant. On October 30, 1958, the section east of the Dallas–Fort Worth Turnpike was canceled. This highway was transferred to I-20 (now I-30) and Spur 341 at the inception of the Interstate Highway System on September 26, 1960.

Current designation

The first segment of SH 550 was opened and designated on July 25, 2008, despite the first stage of construction having been expected to be completed in 2010, with bidding for the final sections. The first phase of the route opened on March 10, 2011,[7] with tolling for the bridge over FM 1847 beginning on May 11, 2011. Phase two, which created a new limited access highway from FM 3248 to a new entrance to the Port of Brownsville, was opened on June 1, 2013.

The I-169 designation along SH 550 between I-69E/US 77/US 83 and Old Alice Road was approved by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) on May 13, 2015.[8] I-169 was officially designated along the portion of SH 550 between I-69E/US 77/US 83 and Old Alice Road on December 17, 2015.[9] On February 16, 2016, I-169 signs were unveiled by state and local officials along the designated section.[10] On March 26, 2020, the I-169 designation will extend east along SH 550 to the end of the freeway 0.4 miles (0.64 km) east of FM 1847.[11]

Future

I-169 will extend over the SH 550 freeway to the Port of Brownsville. The entire route was expected to open between early and mid-2016.[citation needed] Although the route has not been completed, construction for SH 550 to the Port of Brownsville is planned to start in 2023.[12]

Exit list

The entire route is in Brownsville, Cameron County. All exits are unnumbered.

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See also

Notes

  1. Some sources use "IH-169", as "IH" is an abbreviation used by the Texas Department of Transportation for Interstate Highways.[2]

References

  1. [1]
    Starks, Edward (January 27, 2022). "Table 2: Auxiliary Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways". FHWA Route Log and Finder List. Federal Highway Administration. Archived from the original on February 13, 2023. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  2. [2]
    Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Highway Designations Glossary". Texas Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on July 10, 2022. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  3. [3]
    "State Adding Connector Routes from Expressway to SH 550". The Brownsville Herald. June 10, 2013. p. 1.[dead link]
  4. [4]
    Johnston, Louis; Williamson, Samuel H. (2023). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved November 30, 2023. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the MeasuringWorth series.
  5. [5]
    Texas Transportation Commission (January 28, 2010). "Minute Order 112119" (PDF). Texas Department of Transportation. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 22, 2016. Retrieved October 3, 2017.
  6. [6]
    Clark, Steve (January 2, 2015). "Big Money Transportation Projects Make Gains in 2014". The Brownsville Herald. Retrieved March 8, 2015.[permanent dead link]
  7. [7]
    Sepulveda, Pete Jr. (March 9, 2011). "First Section of SH 550 Toll to Open March 10" (PDF) (Press release). Cameron County Regional Mobility Authority. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 22, 2012.
  8. [8]
    Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (May 14, 2015). "Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering Spring 2015 Report to the Standing Committee on Highways" (PDF) (Report). Washington, DC: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 3, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
  9. [9]
    "Minute Order 113100" (PDF). Texas Transportation Commission. April 26, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  10. [10]
    Clark, Steve (February 17, 2016). "Portion of S.H. 550 gets I-169 designation". The Brownsville Herald. Retrieved February 17, 2016.[permanent dead link]
  11. [11]
    "Texas Transportation Commission Meeting" (PDF). Texas Transportation Commission. March 26, 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 1, 2020. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  12. [12]
    "I-69 System Status" (PDF). ftp.txdot.gov. 2022. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 22, 2021. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
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