Webb County-City of Laredo Regional Mobility Authority

Amount Appropriated?

$7.0M

FFID tracks stages 1–2 — stages 3–5 vary by agency, assistance type, and earmark structure.

Project Description

The Vallecillo Road Project is approximately 2.75 miles of new location east-west roadway about a mile-and-a-half north of Interstate 69W (IH-69W) and aligned with A.F. Muller Blvd. This will be a five-lane roadway directly connecting FM 1472 with IH-35. The project includes a continuous 150\u2019 wide right-of-way for future expansion and will be located in an area where continued industrial growth and development is expected. Sidewalks are planned for both sides including a 10\u2019 shared-use path on one side, making the project an important part of safe multimodal travel through this part of Laredo. 37% of all trade between the U.S. and Mexico comes through the Laredo Port-of-Entry totaling over $200 billion in annual trade resulting in 2.3 million trucks traveling north into Laredo each year of which 90% go through World Trade Bridge. FM 1472 is the only main arterial that receives the majority of this traffic that undergoes 60,000 vehicles per day of which 60% is tractor trailer traffic. There is only one major roadway that connects IH 35 to FM 1472; thus, FM 1472 is highly congested which presents challenges for the movement of trade. In addition to the challenges with the movement of trade traffic, the high traffic volume and the very limited connection points on FM 1472 make it extremely difficult for fire and emergency vehicles to traverse FM 1472 during instances of major vehicular accidents or other emergencies. Vallecillo Road will provide another major ingress and egress connection between FM 1472 and IH 35 and better allow for the movement of goods from industrial area receiving trade from Mexico to IH 35 which will improve Mobility through alternate routes to congestion, improve Safety for the traveling public and increase Economic Development & Regional Tax Base.