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EAGLE LAKE – On Thursday, April 27, the Eagle Lake Noon Lions Club welcomed two representatives from the Texas Department of Transportation’s Yoakum District: Ryan Simper is the engineer for Wharton Area of the Yoakum District and is in charge of construction and maintenance within four counties. Lucean Kuykendall is the Public Information Officer for all the 11 counties in the Yoakum District.
Simper spoke about the responsibilities of the Yoakum District to plan, design, build, operate and maintain the state transportation system in its 11 counties: Austin, Calhoun, Colorado, DeWitt, Fayette, Gonzales, Jackson, Lavaca, Matagorda, Victoria and Wharton.
The Lions learned the district is responsible for two major corridors, Interstate 10 and U.S. Route 59, which are vital components to Texas transportation, and currently has $1 billion construction projects under contract to upgrade U.S. Route 59 throughout the district to Interstate 69 standards and add additional lanes to Interstate 10.
Some of the planned key projects Simper spoke about that will take place in the area during the next four years, as noted by the Lions, are: -Interstate 10 in Colorado County: Add additional lanes in both directions$600 million.
-U.S. Route 59 around Wharton: Upgrade to interstate standards- $250 million.
-U.S. Route 77 in Fayette County: Add two lanes to create a four-lane divided highway- $100 million.
-U.S. Route 77 in Victoria County: Add two lanes to create a four-lane divided highway- $60 million.
Safety is an additional important TxDOT responsibility. The Lions learned that Yoakum District’s safety program currently has over $35 million budgeted for the next four years. There are projects underway to widen roads, add turn lanes, add median barrier and install sidewalks. The district is also working on adding new traffic signals, upgrading existing traffic signals and adding overhead lighting.
Simper also highlighted the goal of roadway maintenance. The Yoakum District spends an average of $15 million to seal coat 350 miles of roadway each year and crack seals approximately 1,500-lane miles of roadway each year to preserve the pavement life, according to a release.
