Harris County Flood Control
The Harris County Flood Control (HCFC) Channel Enclosure Project will likely be impacting both the San Felipe and Westheimer bridges over a drainage ditch over the coming months. The following is from HCFC: Bridges at Westheimer Road and San Felipe Street that cross a drainage ditch formally identified as W129-00-00 will be completely or partially closed while they are reconstructed as part of the Harris County Flood Control District's W129-00-00 Channel Enclosure Project.Changes in the construction schedule have delayed the expected bridge closures from previously published dates. During the Christmas holiday, electronic signs were briefly turned on that incorrectly stated the Westheimer closure would begin on January 13. The Westheimer bridge work is not expected to begin until February 2013. The Flood Control District is working with our partner agencies to confirm the bridge and lane closure dates. The signs have been turned off, but will be turned on again after the closure dates are confirmed. You can expect more updates in the coming weeks as more information becomes available. The bridge reconstruction projects will require traffic flow on the Westheimer bridge to be limited to one lane in each direction for up to a month and all lanes on the San Felipe bridge to be closed for up to two weeks. The bridges will not be under construction at the same time. The Flood Control District will establish detour routes that will aid in the flow of traffic during the bridge projects and will provide an advisory to area residents, the media and other interested parties closer to the time of bridge construction. In August 2011, the Flood Control District began this $13.2 million capital improvement project to improve the storm-water-carrying capacity and public safety features associated with the poorly-functioning drainage ditch that runs adjacent to the Union Pacific Railroad tracks just inside West Loop 610. This phase of the project spans the section of the drainage ditch between San Felipe and Richmond Avenue and includes the demolition and replacement of the two 50-year-old bridges at San Felipe and Westheimer. For more information about the project, visit the W129-00-00 Channel Enclosure Project webpage at www.hcfcd.org/W129. If you have questions or comments, please call the Flood Control District's Project and Study Information Line, which is monitored daily, at 713-684-4040. |