After years of controversy, groundbreaking for I-45 expansion project to begin this week

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- After more than a decade of back and forth, TxDOT will be breaking ground this week on its I-45 expansion project and holding two public meetings about the next phases. This comes as the massive $13 billion project continues to draw criticism for its plans to widen the freeway. The price tag was previously $9 billion.

TxDOT spent more than 15 years studying, designing, and planning ways to reduce Houston's worsening traffic and respond to the city's population growth. It ultimately decided on the North Houston Highway Improvement Project (NHHIP), which would add lanes and widen I-45 from downtown north to Beltway 8.

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The transportation agency said the project will not only alleviate congestion, but it will also replace aging infrastructure, enhance safety, and mitigate flooding. Construction is supposed to be completed sometime around 2042.

"We're looking at ways to move the people and freight that comes through these areas. There's a lot of activity going on and it's about getting it around more efficiently," TxDOT spokesperson Danny Perez said. "We're also correcting some of the older infrastructure and bringing those design standards up to date."

However, the controversial project continues to face opposition from parts of the community, who have supported attempts over the last few years to halt the project without success. The project will displace people in more than a thousand homes, hundreds of businesses, and several places of worship that are mainly in communities of color.

READ MORE: City approves controversial sale of land to TxDOT for freeway expansion

Michael Moritz of the opposition group, Stop TxDOT I-45, believes the project would leave a detrimental impact on the neighborhoods in its pathway.

"I implore other Houstonians that are not directly impacted by this project to think about what it would feel like to lose your home, even if you got paid the taxable value for it," Moritz said. "You may end up further from work, your kid's school, or your friends and family."

Perez said TxDOT will work with each displaced resident and business owner individually, compensate them for their properties, and offer participation in their relocation program.

Opponents from Stop TxDOT I-45 said they are concerned that even for people who don't lose their homes in nearby neighborhoods, they will be affected by poorer air quality, more noise, and light pollution.

State Sen. Molly Cook, who represents District 15 that overlaps with some parts of the project, believes there are better ways to deal with Houston's traffic problem and wants to see more money go into public transportation.

"Right now, TxDOT is constitutionally mandated to spend over 90% of all pertinent revenue on roadway projects, and we need to untie those engineer's hands so they can get creative, keep us safe, and invest in multi-modal transportation such as trains, buses, BRT, and facilities that are accessible to folks with disabilities," Cook said.

ALSO: TxDOT holds public meetings about big changes to I-45 through downtown Houston

TxDOT will hold two public meetings this week about Segment 1 and Segment 2 of the NHHIP, which cover portions that run from I-610 to Beltway 8 and I-10. They are not scheduled for construction until after 2030.

The in-person meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 15, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Moody Community Center. The virtual meeting will take place Thursday, Oct. 17, at 5 p.m., with a real-time-question-and-answer session.

The groundbreaking for Segment 3 is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 16, at 2 p.m., at Pitch 25 in downtown Houston. Construction for Segment 3B-1's drainage and infrastructure will begin next month, and Segment 3B-2's mainlane construction will commence in January 2026.

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