Traffic on I-45 Freeway (Houston, Friendswood: how much, construction, rail)

[Maddie800]

Can anyone tell me what the traffic is like from Friendswood area on I-45 Freeway to downtown. Typical rush hour times 7:30am and 5pm and then during the day like at 12pm. Is it a parking lot or does it move? Thanks!

[Oildog]

Look on www.chron.com

[westhou]

Traffic is very heavy during rush hour. That's the way all the freeways are in Houston.

[piyf]

I travel this highway but make my exit on 610. It's bad during rush hour but I'm willing to bet there's much worse highways in the country. There's 2 bottle necks where I drive. Beltway 8 and 45, 45 and 610. If I go during non rush hour times it takes me 30 mins to get to work or home. If it's during peak rush hour, it'll take me 50 mins tops. Which sounds like a lot but that's nothing compared to highways in LA.

I don't know how much worse it is past 610 but I'm sure it doesn't get better.

Originally Posted by westhou

Traffic is very heavy during rush hour. That's the way all the freeways are in Houston.

Ever drive on 225? It never gets traffic unless an accident occurs.

[tstone]

I-10 east and 146 are also freeways at posted speeds at all hours of the day. Basically anywhere there is heavy industry, the freeways are overly large.

Right now I-45 is a parking lot down around Fuqua to FM 2351 because of construction. In Jan 2012 they are supposed to make it 10+6 lanes all the way to El Dorado. That will eliminate that bottleneck for traffic going to the northern parts of Friendswood and Clear Lake. For now we have to deal with it though.

[SouthernBoy205]

Originally Posted by tstone

I-10 east and 146 are also freeways at posted speeds at all hours of the day. Basically anywhere there is heavy industry, the freeways are overly large.

Right now I-45 is a parking lot down around Fuqua to FM 2351 because of construction. In Jan 2012 they are supposed to make it 10+6 lanes all the way to El Dorado. That will eliminate that bottleneck for traffic going to the northern parts of Friendswood and Clear Lake. For now we have to deal with it though.

16 lanes total?

[piyf]

Originally Posted by tstone

I-10 east and 146 are also freeways at posted speeds at all hours of the day. Basically anywhere there is heavy industry, the freeways are overly large.

Right now I-45 is a parking lot down around Fuqua to FM 2351 because of construction. In Jan 2012 they are supposed to make it 10+6 lanes all the way to El Dorado. That will eliminate that bottleneck for traffic going to the northern parts of Friendswood and Clear Lake. For now we have to deal with it though.

All it's going to do is create another bottleneck. The 2 exits past ED are worse than ED now.


Guess I need to take a different way to work once this construction goes to full effect.

[tstone]

Originally Posted by SouthernBoy205

16 lanes total?

Yeah like 5 mainlanes (one is an entrance/exit) and 3 feeder lanes on each side. That's how I-45 basically is inside the beltway.

And that's likely true about creating another bottleneck. However if you exit within the city limits of Houston it's probably a good thing. Makes me wonder how much more traffic will spill out onto the surface streets though.

[SouthernBoy205]

Originally Posted by tstone

Yeah like 5 mainlanes (one is an entrance/exit) and 3 feeder lanes on each side. That's how I-45 basically is inside the beltway.

And that's likely true about creating another bottleneck. However if you exit within the city limits of Houston it's probably a good thing. Makes me wonder how much more traffic will spill out onto the surface streets though.

Thanks for explaining. It wuld be a good idea if Houston adds a rail system along its freeways and major corridors. I don't know if they are already doing this, but if not, it would be nice.

[Maddie800]

Thanks all - we are coming from Chicago and the traffic here is horrendous on the tollways - so it sounds much of the same!