Drivers concern about delays as major road project White Oak Bayou Elevation Project progresses

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — If parts of I-10 are part of your daily commute, you may have to spend some extra time behind the wheel.

According to TxDOT, a stretch of I-10 westbound, from the I-45 North Freeway to Houston Avenue, will be reduced to two lanes to help complete a multi-million-dollar project.

Officials with the state agency say the lanes need to be shut down to help finish the White Oak Bayou Elevation Project. The primary objective of the project is to raise the westbound lanes, which are reportedly prone to flooding.

According to TXDOT, I-10 near White Oak Bayou has flooded 10 times since March 1992. That includes during storms in the past, like Hurricane Harvey, where water levels from the bayou got so high that parts of the interstate weren’t passable.

ABC13 spoke with some drivers who understand the need to improve the roadways, and they also have concerns on the time frame. TXDOT officials say, this latest closure will start on Oct. 24th and won’t end until the middle of next year. Some say they use parts of I-10 to get to work or go home, and they worry about what future drive times could look like.

“If it’s anything like other road closures, I normally take 59 and 610 on my daily commute and if it’s anything like that, then it’ll be awful, as lanes close, traffic gets worse and worse,” Virag Pawa said.

“It’s a little frustrating getting to work. Our commute is a little bit longer, having to go the opposite way to town, you have to take, you have to take another road that is also blocked, so it adds another ten minutes to your commute.” Kyle Stanton said.

“It’s going to be more of pain, but hopefully it’s an improvement after it gets done,” Skipper Parsley said.

The entire project is expected to be finished by the middle of 2028.

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