I-69 span project squeezing lane flow
Night, weekend work set near Kingwood at San Jacinto River
Lane closings are planned for this weekend and next as workers prepare for the replacement of the southbound Interstate 69 bridge at the San Jacinto River near Kingwood, a job that is expected to take up to six months to complete.
Most of the closings will occur on weekends and during overnight hours until around March 23, when the major work to replace the bridge begins.
Starting at 3 a.m. Saturday, the northbound I-69 lanes from FM 1960 and Sorters McClellan Road will be closed, as will the entrance ramp from FM 1960 to the northbound freeway, according to the Texas Department of Transportation.
The work will affect traffic along I-69 between Humble and Kingwood, coming as many are leaving town and returning from school spring break vacations.
The southbound bridge will remain open to traffic and safe to use — at least for a couple weeks — but heavy loads have been restricted and steered to the frontage road since shortly after the freeway reopened followed the flooding from Hurricane Harvey rains.
Flooding sent water surging in the river with such force that it altered the basin of the river, scouring away the earth that supported the bridge’s columns.
Emergency repairs were ordered, though the work was delayed as officials decided what repairs were needed to return the bridge to a suitable condition. Webber LLC, one of the region’s largest road construction companies, will repair the bridge at a cost of $7.5 million. The work is expected to take three to six months, with incentives built into the contract for early completion.
One of the more complex decisions for the project was what to do with southbound traffic during construction, TxDOT spokesman Danny Perez said. Rumors led to fears in the Kingwood area that southbound traffic would be forced onto the frontage road or closed entirely.
“We are not shutting them off,” Perez said.
Instead, the freeway that normally is five lanes in each direction divided across two bridges will share a single bridge. That will leave three lanes in each direction, along with the frontage roads.
Still, the looming work is worrisome for some travelers.
“Guess I’ll just stay at home,” said George Rybeck, 74, who lives west of Porter.
“I know it’s got to be done, but it’s going to be a big pain for a lot of folks.”
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