History
A second beltway around Houston, known for its fast population growth, had been in the planning stages since the 1950s (the first was the 610 Loop, created between the 1950s and the '70s). The Tollway's construction was piecemealed from the opening of the West Belt, a surface street, in the mid-1970s to the completion of the South Belt in the mid-1990s. The Jesse H. Jones Memorial Bridge, the Tollway's crossing of the Houston Ship Channel, was constructed by the then-Texas Turnpike Authority (TTA) and was opened in 1982.
The TTA, however, turned down the opportunity to improve the entire Beltway as well, leaving Harris County to upgrade the road to freeway standards. However, Harris County could not afford to build and maintain a freeway from its general fund.
In September 1983, county voters approved a referendum by a 7-3 margin to release up to $900 million in bonds to create two toll roads - the Hardy Toll Road (basically a reliever for I-45 between downtown Houston and Montgomery County) and the Sam Houston Tollway, which would be the main lanes of the Beltway. Shortly after the referendum, the Harris County Commissioners Court created the HCTRA to administer the construction and operation of the new road system. Then-County Judge Jon Lindsay is generally credited with shepherding the referendum from its infancy to its passage, along with the implementation of the plan for the roadway.
In 1989 the The Bangles performed at the opening of the segment of Beltway 8 between Interstate 10 (Katy Freeway) and U.S. Route 290. On Saturday July 7, 1990, a ceremony, called Road Party II, took place for the opening of the section of Beltway 8 between Interstate 45 (the North Freeway) and Highway 290, the final segment. Organizers had planned for a crowd of 100,000. KLOL, a radio station, sponsored the event. Jerry Lightfoot & The Essential Band did the opening 80 minute set. The band Huey Lewis and the News performed at the ceremony. The 290-45 segment opened on Sunday July 8, 1990. The project was on schedule and $133 million in 1990 U.S. dollars under budget.
Despite recent speculation about the possibility of the Sam Houston Tollway being sold by HCTRA to a private firm, the Harris County Commissioners Court unanimously voted to keep the tollway in the hands of HCTRA.
On September 3, 2007 the toll increased by $0.25 system wide with some exceptions.
On February 26, 2011, construction of the main lanes between U.S. Highway 59 (Eastex Freeway) and U.S. Highway 90 (Crosby Freeway) was completed, thus completing the entire Beltway system. This section was originally set to be completed between 2007 and 2009, but funding issues delayed its completion. The project cost $400 million and was completed ahead of schedule and under budget. The new 13 miles (21 km) section has three lanes in each direction, and an EZ Tag or TxTag will be required to access it. Almost 60 years had passed between the planning of Beltway 8 and the opening of the final section.
Read more about this topic: Texas State Highway Beltway 8
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