Governor Greg Abbott has announced a new 10-year statewide roadway construction plan with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT).
The governor released an announcement of this new plan — the 2024 Unified Transportation Program (UTP) — on February 23, calling it a way “to ensure that Texas remains the premier destination for people and businesses.”
A total of $100 billion of taxpayer money will be mobilized to increase the number of transportation projects, reduce congestion, maintain roadways, and upgrade safety across the state.
The 2024 UTP allocates $15 billion more than that of the previous year, which boasted an $85 billion plan. The sum of $100 billion is based on the projected collection of tax dollars from state sources throughout Texas.
“Safety is a top priority for TxDOT, and these funding levels reflect that,” said TxDOT Executive Director Marc Williams in a press release.
“This historic Unified Transportation Plan allows the department to deliver on a record number of projects that are not only innovative but will help improve safety for all Texans. These efforts can, and do, have real impacts on our ability to drastically reduce fatalities on our roadways.”
According to TxDOT statistics from 2021, there was one motor vehicle traffic fatality every two hours in Texas.
The governor’s 2023 plan currently lists over 100 different projects for both the Dallas and Fort Worth districts, including the widening of freeways and non-freeways and the improvement of county connections and interchanges.
One roadway project that is expected to be completed by 2025 is an endeavor to add traffic lanes to U.S. Highway 380 in Frisco and Denton County, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
“Under TxDOT’s 2024 Unified Transportation Program, we will dedicate critical funds to bolster our major roadway infrastructure to address the unique needs of Texans in rural, urban, and metropolitan communities,” said Gov. Abbott in the release.
“This 10-year plan will further boost our economy and keep Texas the economic juggernaut of the nation,” he added.
Texas Transportation Commission chairman, J. Bruce Bugg Jr., said that this amount of funding will help meet the needs of Texans in the midst of economic and population expansion.
“As cities grow every year, it’s important we continue to address congestion in our busiest parts of the state through our Texas Clear Lanes initiative, which is also set to get a significant boost,” said Bugg in the release.