The City of Ingleside is about to have an answer to some of its biggest industrial traffic problems and safety issues, and it comes in the form of a new state highway.
It finally appears that State Highway 200 is going to be built. The goal is to alleviate dangerous traffic traveling in and out of Ingleside.
The problem is at Highway 361 and FM 1069. Traffic is backing up there at many times throughout the day due to the activity along the ship channel. Everyone from the Port of Corpus Christi to state highway officials believes that putting in the new State Highway 200 will help.
The two-mile stretch of roadway would run from the "Welcome to Ingleside" sign off of Highway 361 down to FM 1069 and would provide industrial access through Ingleside without having to go through the middle of town.
"It's a lot of traffic coming through here. A lot of traffic and yeah, something needs to be done about it," Ingleside resident Angie Garcia said. "I don't get out after a certain time because traffic is so bad."
"There's a lot of traffic at certain times," an Ingleside resident known as "The Beard" said. "Kind of don't like but what can you do? They should have done that a long time ago."
Area officials met at the Solomon P. Ortiz Center Wednesday to talk about the project. The Ingleside city manager was there as was the San Patricio County judge. Port officials were on hand as well to listen in on the details.
Relieving traffic pressure in Ingleside was one of the top reasons given for the project to finally move forward after being on the drawing board for years.
"Right now we have terrific traffic challenges when we go to school in the morning and when businesses get out in the afternoon, and I think the second thing is that it helps us prepare for the future in terms of making some land in our community more accessible," Ingleside City Manager Melissa Byrne said.
It sounds like construction on the highway is going to start soon.
"Things are coming together. We have environmental clearance and now we're working to secure right-of-way and doing the construction in the next couple of years," said Christopher D. Caron, District Engineer for the Texas Department of Transportation's Corpus Christi district.
The two-mile state highway project could end up costing a total of $17 million.
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