where can i find more info on this. I can't believe they are doing this during THE SEASON ! let's kick an Island when they are down! gawd

Well, Jim was very much instrumental in getting their originally planned closure postponed until after Labor Day, but then TxDOT caved to the input from folks up here in LC who are opposed to delaying the completion of that nightmare at 96 and IH 45.  I guess everybody knows that the traffic problem for those of us who live up here is horrnedous, and I will admit that I was disappointed that the completion of the interchange was going to be postponed, but hey, it ain't gonna kill us to wait another few weeks until the end of the tourist season on the island. 

TxDOT ain't very good at thinking about the impact on the public of some of their actions, to be honest.  They are great engineers and planners and implementers of important projects, but they have myopia when it comes to the problems of the little guy trying to meet his payroll who gets cut off by one of their projects. 

Of course, I can see how they sometimes throw up their hands and just give up on satisfying everybody, because you can't ever do that.  Somebody is always gonna be inconvenienced by these things.  The problem is that the Department doesn't seem to have a feel for the relative importance of who gets the nasty end of the stick at a particular time.

You might try to mount another protest, Dixie, but I think it's getting too late for that now.

The flashing signs on I-45 last night said 9-28-09. I figured it was a typo.

69 Chevy:

The flashing signs on I-45 last night said 9-28-09. I figured it was a typo.

That was the date that TxDOT had postponed the closure to after Jim's successful campaign got 'em to do it, but then the opposition up here raised so much hell that they changed it again to next Friday.  I guess the contractor forgot to change his message board.  Unless TxDOT has waffled again. 

I understand the situation that the Department is faced with, because I've been there quite a few times over the years, both as a TxDOT employee, and as a Contractor building a TxDOT project, and I know they are damned if they do and damned if they don't. 

But, what has always puzzled me about the mentality of TxDOT is that they don't seem to have a sense of the financial hardships that they can often wreak on people.  Their mission just doesn't speak to that.  They are focused always on the completion of highway projects at the least possible direct cost, in the safest way possible, at the least possible inconvenience to the travelling public.  The collateral financial damage to the adjacent unlucky businesses doesn't seem to enter into the equation much.  At least that's been my impression of things over the past fifty years of exposure to the game.

 "That was the date that TxDOT had postponed the closure to after Jim's successful campaign got 'em to do it, but then the opposition up here raised so much hell that they changed it again to next Friday."

I will just have to come down Thursday and if I can't leave Sunday I will just have to stay!

69 Chevy:

I will just have to come down Thursday and if I can't leave Sunday I will just have to stay!

Good excuse. 

Don't blame you.  It's probably gonna be a real nightmare for sure, and I'm prolly gonna end up right in the middle of it since one of my daughters is bringing the pups down here that weekend, hellbent on a beach birthday bash for one of the youngun's. But, I've been trying to practice up on exercising patience at that danged intersection for several months now, so this will be my graduation event I guess. 

Talk about a baptism by fire. 

Truth is that even getting over on SH 3 to avoid the closure will be a real Snafu type situation though, but I'm right in the middle of it with no good escape, so I either have to hunker down at the house or just hold my nose and leap into the crowd.  But, if I was coming from very far up north, I think I would take NASA 1 all the way to 146 and stay on 146 south to the Texas City wye.  Might not save any time or gasoline, but at least you would be moving.

HOLY CRAP! I thought I was gonna go somewhere today.  Scratch that.  Can't get out of my subdivision! 

All of IH 45 traffic is now creeping through beautiful downtown League City.   Parking lot on SH 3, because nobody thought to change the timing on the traffic signal at SH 3 and Walker Street.  Another Charlie Foxtrot from the traffic planners.

I hope I don't run out of beer this weekend.

So Dawg did you run out of beer? I saw someone that looked like you driving a riding lawn mower down the feeder road.

69 Chevy:

So Dawg did you run out of beer? I saw someone that looked like you driving a riding lawn mower down the feeder road.

Well, no, but for the grace of my resourceful  spouse, went I.  Luckily, Mrs. Dawg had stashed away a Dawg survival kit for just such an occasion.  But, otherwise, I probably would have joined that gentlman's parade.  Desperate situations call for desperate measures.

Was it behind a plate of glass with a sign that read "Break in Case of Emergency"?

69 Chevy:

Was it behind a plate of glass with a sign that read "Break in Case of Emergency"?

Yeah, there you go.  How'd you guess?

I have been know to break a few of those. I've got the scars to prove it!

69 Chevy:

I have been know to break a few of those. I've got the scars to prove it!

I hear ya.  Some of my scars have scars.