Texas State Highway Beltway 8
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| State Highway Beltway 8 |
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| Length: | 83.13[1] mi (133.78 km) | ||||||||
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| Formed: | 1969[1] | ||||||||
| CCW end: |  SH 225 in Pasadena |
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| Major junctions: |
 IH 45 -  US 59 IH 10 - IH 45 US 59 - all in Houston |
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| CW end: | IH 10 east of Houston |
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State Highway Beltway 8 (BW8), the Sam Houston Parkway, along with the Sam Houston Tollway, is a beltway around the city of Houston, Texas, United States, lying entirely within Harris County. Beltway 8, a state highway, runs mostly along the frontage roads, only using the main lanes where they are free (mostly on the north side of Houston). The main lanes elsewhere are the Sam Houston Tollway, a toll road owned and operated by the Harris County Toll Road Authority (HCTRA). East of Houston, the Tollway crosses the Houston Ship Channel on the Jesse H. Jones Memorial Bridge, a toll bridge; this forms a gap in Beltway 8 between Interstate Highway 10 (Baytown-East Freeway) and State Highway 225 (La Porte Freeway).
As of 2006, the main lanes are not completed in the northeast quadrant, roughly between U.S. Highway 59 (Eastex Freeway) and U.S. Highway 90 (Crosby Freeway). This section was originally to be completed between 2007 and 2009, but funding issues threaten to delay its completion.[2]
Beltway 8 is the intermediate beltway in the Houston area. The inner beltway - Interstate Highway 610 - lies completely within Houston (except for an approximate two mile stretch that runs through the City of Bellaire), and the outer beltway - State Highway 99 (Grand Parkway) - is nowhere near complete.
Portions of the West Belt, as sections of the Beltway are called by their compass names, are in various stages of expansion due to high traffic volumes.
The Tollway's construction was piecemealed from the opening of the West Belt in the mid-1970s to the completion of the South Belt in the mid-1990s. The Jesse H. Jones Memorial Bridge, the Tollway's crossing of the Houston Ship Channel, was constructed by the Texas Turnpike Authority (TTA) and was opened in the early 1980s.
Like other toll roads in the Houston area, the speed limit is 65 mph on the freeway portions, except for the section between Interstate 10 and Westheimer Road.
Despite recent speculation about the possibility of the Sam Houston Tollway being sold by HCTRA to a private firm, the Harris County Commissioners Court unanimously voted to keep the tollway in the hands of HCTRA.[3]
Beltway 8 falls within the corridor designated for the extension of Interstate 69 from Indianapolis to Laredo, and officials are considering possible routes that would include part of Beltway 8 for I-69.
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[edit] Free sections
The longest free section of main lanes is on the north side of Houston, stretching from Ella Boulevard east to the current end of the freeway east of U.S. Highway 59 (Eastex Freeway). This is maintained by the Texas Department of Transportation east of roughly the Hardy Toll Road interchange.[4] It includes the interchanges with US 59, the Hardy Toll Road, and Interstate Highway 45 (North Freeway).
Three shorter free sections also exist:
- Beginning of main lanes north of Wallisville Road to Jacinto Port Boulevard, including the Interstate Highway 10 (Baytown-East Freeway) interchange
- State Highway 3 (Galveston Road) to Beamer Road, including the Interstate Highway 45 (Gulf Freeway) interchange
- West Airport Boulevard to Beechnut Street, including the U.S. Highway 59 (Southwest Freeway) interchange
These all exist in order to allow federal funding to have been used to build the freeway-to-freeway interchanges at the Baytown-East, Gulf and Southwest Freeways.[citation needed]
The frontage roads are generally continuous, and allow for slower free travel along the tolled segments. Only one break exists in the frontage roads; there are also several locations where one must turn to stay on them:
- Jacinto Port Boulevard to State Highway 225 - the frontage roads do not cross the Houston Ship Channel (and thus that piece of Beltway 8 was removed in 1978)[1]
- Deerwood Drive to Boheme Drive - both directions are on the east side of the Tollway for the crossing of Buffalo Bayou
- West Little York Road to U.S. Highway 290 (Northwest Freeway) - both directions shift to the west side, intersecting US 290 at Senate Avenue, northwest of the Tollway
- At the Katy Freeway, some of the frontage road lanes will bypass the intersection, allowing vehicles on the frontage road to travel through the interchange without stopping at traffic lights.[5][6]
[edit] Lane configuration
The lane count is for mainlanes only, unless otherwise noted. Starting at U.S. Highway 290, and moving in a clockwise direction, mainlane counts are as follows:
- 3 lanes each way between U.S. Highway 290 and State Highway 249 (work started in late 2006 to add a fourth lane in the clockwise direction)
- 4 lanes each way between State Highway 249 and Interstate 45
- 3 lanes each way between Interstate 45 and J.F.K Boulevard
- 4 lanes each way between J.F.K Boulevard and U.S. Highway 59 (Eastex Freeway)
- 2 feeder lanes each way between U.S. Highway 59 and Tidwell Road
- 3 feeder lanes each way between Tidwell Road and U.S. Highway 90
- 2 lanes each way between U.S. Highway 90 and Wallisville Road
- 3 lanes each way between Wallisville Road and Interstate 10
- 2 lanes each way between Interstate 10 and State Highway 3 (Galveston Road)
- 3 lanes each way between State Highway 3 (Galveston Road) and Beamer Road
- 2 lanes each way between Beamer Road and U.S. Highway 59 (Southwest Freeway)
- 4 lanes each way between U.S. Highway 59 and U.S. Highway 290 (portions between Highway 59 and Westpark Tollway are, as of 2006, undergoing reconstruction and widening)
[edit] Exit list
Clockwise (CW) reads down and counterclockwise (CCW) reads up.
| Mile[7] | Destinations | Tolls | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wallisville Road | |||
| Woodforest Boulevard | |||
| Market Street | CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| 83.13[1] | Interstate Highway 10 - Houston; Beaumont |
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| Jacinto Port Boulevard | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Ship Channel Bridge barrier toll | $2.00 | ||
| 0.0 | State Highway 225 - Deer Park; Houston |
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| Red Bluff Road; Pasadena Boulevard | $0.50 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Spencer Highway; Vista Road; Pine Street | $0.75 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Fairmont Parkway; Genoa-Red Bluff Road; Vista Road | $1.00 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Sam Houston East barrier toll | $1.25 | ||
| Genoa-Red Bluff Road | CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| 7.5 |  State Highway 3 - Old Galveston Road |
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| 8.6 | Interstate Highway 45 - Houston; Galveston |
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| Sabo Road | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Beamer Road; Blackhawk Road; Sabo Road; Hughes Road | |||
| Blackhawk Road | CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| Monroe Road | $0.50 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| 13.6 |  State Highway 35 - Telephone Road; Hobby Airport |
$0.75 CW exit and CCW entrance | |
| Mykawa Road | CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| South Wayside Drive | $1.00 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Sam Houston Southeast barrier toll | $1.25 | ||
| Martin Luther King Boulevard | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
 Farm to Market Road 865 - Cullen Boulevard; Fellows Road |
$0.50 CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
 State Highway 288; Fellows Road |
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| Kirby Drive | CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| Sam Houston Southwest barrier toll | $1.25 | ||
 Farm to Market Road 521 - Almeda Road |
$1.00 CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| South Post Oak Road | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Chimney Rock Road; South Post Oak Road | $0.75 CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| Hillcroft Avenue; Chimney Rock Road; Rockwell Boulevard; Fort Bend Toll Road | $0.50 CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| Fondren Road | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
  U.S. Highway 90 Alternate - South Main Street; Fondren Road |
$0.50 CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| South Gessner Road | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| West Airport Boulevard; South Gessner Road | |||
| West Bellfort Boulevard | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| 31.1 | U.S. Highway 59 - Victoria; Houston |
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 Beltway 8 Frontage Road |
CCW exit only | ||
| 32.2 | Bissonnet Street | CCW exit and CW entrance | |
| Beechnut Street | |||
| Bellaire Boulevard; Westpark Drive (Westpark Tollway) | $0.50 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Westpark Drive; Harwin Drive (Westpark Tollway) | CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| 36.3 |  Westheimer Road; Richmond Avenue (Farm to Market Road 1093) |
$0.75 CW exit and CCW entrance | |
| Briar Forest Drive | $0.75 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Sam Houston South barrier toll | $1.25 | ||
| Deerwood Drive | $0.75 CCW exit | CCW exit only | |
| Boheme Drive | CW exit only | ||
| Memorial Drive | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| 39.6 | Interstate Highway 10 - Downtown; San Antonio |
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| Westview Drive | CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| Hammerly Boulevard; Kempwood Drive | $0.50 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Clay Road; Tanner Road; Kempwood Drive | $0.75 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Sam Houston Central barrier toll | $1.25 | ||
| West Little York Road | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| 46.0 |  U.S. Highway 290 - Downtown; Austin |
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| Philippine Street | CW entrance only | ||
| West Road; Philippine Street | $0.50 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Fallbrook Drive; Windfern Road | $0.75 CW exit and CCW entrance | CW exit and CCW entrance | |
| Gessner Road; Windfern Road; Fallbrook Drive | $0.75 CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| 52.3 |  State Highway 249 - Bammel North Houston Road; Antoine Drive |
$1.00 CW exit and CCW entrance | CW exit and CCW entrance |
| 52.3 | State Highway 249 north |
CCW exit and CW entrance | |
| 52.3 | State Highway 249 south - Hollister Road; Fairbanks North Houston Road |
CCW exit and CW entrance | |
| Antoine Drive; Bammel North Houston Road | CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| Sam Houston North barrier toll | $1.25 | ||
| VA Houston National Cemetery | CW exit and CCW entrance | ||
| Beltway 8 Frontage Road - Ella Boulevard |
Beltway 8 joins CW and leaves CCW | ||
| 58.5 | Interstate Highway 45 - Downtown; Dallas |
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| Greenspoint Drive; Imperial Valley Drive | |||
| Imperial Valley Drive | CCW exit and CW entrance | ||
| Hardy Toll Road | |||
| Hardy Toll Road north | CW exit only | ||
| Aldine-Westfield Road | no CW entrance | ||
| JFK Boulevard; Vickery Drive | |||
| Bush Intercontinental Airport | CW exit and entrance | ||
| Lee Road; Vickery Drive | |||
| 65.6 | U.S. Highway 59 - Houston; Cleveland |
CW exit and CCW entrance |
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Texas Department of Transportation, Highway Designation File - State Highway Beltway 8
- ^ Plans for Beltway 8 near Fall Creek fuzzy. Rad Sallee, Houston Chronicle. June 5, 2006. Last accessed November 9, 2006.
- ^ Harris County won't sell or lease toll roads / Financial adviser suggests imitating a private company will boost profits. Bill Murphy, Houston Chronicle. June 21, 2006. Last accessed November 9, 2006.
- ^ Harris County Toll Road Authority, Sam Houston & Hardy Toll Road Map
- ^ Schematic Layout: IH 10 Katy Freeway (at Beltway 8) TxDOT. June 19, 2003. Last accessed October 14, 2006. Note: Bypass feeder lanes are in dark purple; non-bypass feeder lanes are in dark blue and are beneath the bypass lanes.
- ^ Interstate 10: Construction, Loop 610 to BW8 (VIDEO). Erik Slotboom, www.houstonfreeways.com. December 30, 2005. Last accessed October 14, 2005.
- ^ Texas County Highway Maps
