The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has more than $725 million in widening, interchange and resiliency projects under way along Interstate 45 South through Galveston County that are designed to ease congestion, improve evacuation capacity and reduce flooding risks, galvnews.com reported.
Danny Perez, a TxDOT spokesperson, said the projects by contractors Williams Brothers cover multiple segments between Dickinson, Texas City and the Galveston causeway, with construction likely through at least 2028.
One $166 million project stretches from Farm-to-Market 1764 to Farm-to Market 519 and is scheduled for mid-2026 completion, galvnews.com reported. The project will expand the interstate from six to eight main lanes and construct two new overpasses at Delany Road and Vauthier Street.
Additional auxiliary lanes and turn lanes will be added to reduce congestion and vehicle backups in Dickinson and Texas City.
Perez said that bad weather and high groundwater levels remain the project's most significant construction challenges and can impact excavation and foundation timelines, according to galvnews.com.
The project is being coordinated operationally as construction is occurring on adjacent I-45 segments to the north and south, according to Perez said. Additionally, northbound main lanes were built simultaneously with the neighboring northern project, while traffic control plans are allowing southbound construction to proceed without delaying southern segment work.
A bit south, TxDOT is in the first phase of a $226 million project from FM 519 to the Texas City Wye, galvnews.com reported.
That project is expected to be completed in summer 2028, with that timeline reflecting the length of the corridor and the complexity of its design.
The Texas City Wye will be significantly reconfigured, Perez said. The existing interchange will be converted into a diamond interchange that features continuous frontage roads, two left-turn lanes, two through lanes and dedicated U-turns, according to galvnews.com.
The department has coordinated with nearby industrial operators that rely on the interchange and generate heavy truck traffic, Perez told galvnews.com. Three main lanes will remain open throughout construction except for short-term closures, with contractors offered incentives to complete work at the I-45 45, State Highway 6 and State Highway 146 intersection early to minimize traffic impacts.
Drainage and flood-mitigation improvements are major parts of the FM 519-to-Texas City Wye project, Perez said.
That includes the installation of new closed storm sewer systems throughout the corridor, which comprise more than 17 mi. of large concrete box culverts. A new pump station also is being built at the Texas City Wye, while roads south of the interchange are being raised to improve passability during high tide and heavy rainfall, according to galvnews.com.
A $103 million project extends from the Texas City Wye to north of the Galveston Causeway, with completion anticipated in the summer of 2027.
It includes the construction of four new overpasses, with new northbound and southbound main lane bridges widened from three to four lanes and built with shoulders. New frontage road bridges also will be built in both directions, galvnews.com reported.
The I-45 main lanes in this segment will be elevated about 8 to 10 ft. to help keep the roadway passable during storm surges, Perez said. The project is set for completion before construction begins on the planned widening of I-45 from the Causeway to 61st Street on Galveston Island.
North of Dickinson, the I-45 project from FM 517 to FM 1764 is approximately 78 percent complete, with anticipated completion in the winter of 2026 or the spring of 2027. Remaining work includes traffic shifts at the FM 517 and FM 1764 intersections and the final configuration of the southbound main lanes, according to galvnews.com.
That phased approach allows TxDOT to maintain mobility while delivering long-term safety, congestion relief and storm-resilience benefits along a crucial transportation corridor, Perez said.
