Places for People: This typical section illustrates sample improvements that will be made on Meadowglen Lane to enhance conditions for motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians.
Those who drive Meadowglen Lane within Westchase District know that improvements are long overdue. One of our frequent social media commentators described Meadowglen Lane as a “goat trail” and it’s hard to disagree with that assessment. The City of Houston has made repairs when needed. But the roadway needs a complete rebuild – the same treatment that brought Walnut Bend back to life for the hundreds of motorists, school buses, bicyclists and pedestrians who use that street every day.
Meadowglen represents the last of the projects that were approved by the City soon to be completed under the Westchase District’s 380 agreement. “Originally Meadowglen was at the top of our priority list,” noted President and CEO Irma Sanchez. “We wanted to rebuild the street all the way from Gessner to Woodland Park. But our feasibility studies revealed the price tag was just too great to take on the entire segment at one time. And there were no federal grants available to support reconstruction of Meadowglen. So we divided the project into two segments. We’ll start Meadowglen west of the tollway in 2024 and we’ll tackle Meadowglen east of the tollway as part of the next phase of the 380.”
Meadowglen to resemble Walnut Bend
Meadowglen Lane is a vital mixed-use corridor that connects apartment communities and businesses. It draws traffic from Houston Community College, West Houston Assistance Ministries and Alief ISD school buses. It was never designed to handle the volume of traffic that uses it today. Like Walnut Bend, it will be completely rebuilt with new upgraded underground utilities, modern traffic signals, as well as pedestrian and bicycle improvements.
Westchase District-based engineering firm Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam (LAN) was awarded the contract for the design of Meadowglen. Design is 60 percent complete and is currently under review by the City of Houston. The newly-improved roadway will have one travel lane in each direction and three lanes at the intersections (Rogerdale, Walnut Bend, Wilcrest, Hayes and Woodland Park) to accommodate turning movements. A new traffic signal will be added at Meadowglen and Hayes and all the existing signals will be upgraded.
Two key differences between Meadowglen and Walnut Bend is that there will be no on-street parking on Meadowglen and the bike lanes on Meadowglen will be separated from the driving lanes and the sidewalks by a physical buffer. “This will make travel on Meadowglen safer for motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians,” Sanchez noted. “And by eliminating on-street parking, we’ll also eliminate the commercial vehicles that park illegally along Meadowglen, creating sight hazards for other vehicles exiting the apartment communities and businesses along Meadowglen.”
Precinct 4 funding helps make project possible
Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones recently included Meadowglen in her list of projects to receive funding under the “Places 4 People” initiative. Briones awarded $8.8 million to Westchase District for Meadowglen reconstruction. “We set new expectations for the Westchase community when we rebuilt Walnut Bend Lane,” said Sanchez. “We look forward to bringing that same treatment to Meadowglen Lane.”
