Elysian Viaduct - Harris County

The project includes the Elysian Viaduct bridge reconstruction from Brooks to Commerce Street, in Houston (Harris County). The Elysian Viaduct project is approved for construction to improve safety as well as accommodate population growth, enhance mobility and improve connectivity in the local area. The Houston District let the Elysian Viaduct road contract in September 2013 and the contract was awarded and signed in March 2014. Due to delays with acquiring right of way (ROW), TxDOT issued another construction bid and it was awarded to Balfour Beatty in June 2016 for $35.6 million.

Planned improvements

The project improvements include:

Replacing and widening the bridge structure to accommodate paved shoulders and increase the structural integrity to current design standards, as well as improving the roadway approaches
Adding shoulders to the four-lane roadway within a varying ROW width from 90 feet to 120 feet
Adding a five-foot-wide sidewalk along the northbound lanes (east side) between Runnels and Ruiz streets

This project will require additional ROW and displacements.

Construction considerations

TxDOT is committed to working with the public to minimize the environmental impact from construction projects as much as possible.

Construction is expected to last approximately 32 months. However, timing is subject to change.

Bridge demolition continues with the portion of Elysian bridge that is above I-10 eastbound and I-10 westbound and will occur Friday, Sept. 22 - Monday, Sept. 25, 2017, but is subject to change. The demolition will require multiple street closures; closure information can be monitored by:

Signing up for an Elysian Viaduct email subscription
Checking Houston TranStar for closure and detour information
Checking DriveTexas.Org for closure and detour information
Following us on the TxDOT Houston Twitter site

Archeology considerations

As part of the environmental process for this project, TxDOT continues efforts to excavate a historic property located in the construction area: Frost Town. One of Houston’s first neighborhoods, dating back to the 1830s, Frost Town was located just a few blocks north of Minute Maid Park and covered eight city blocks on the south side of Buffalo Bayou just north of downtown Houston. TxDOT archeologists hope to learn as much as they can about this early period in the city’s history, an important goal and outcome guided by the National Historic Preservation Act.

Learn more about this archeology effort on the Elysian Viaduct Archeology Project Page.