Interstate 69E (I-69E) is a north–south

Interstate Highway The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Hi ...

running through

South Texas South Texas is a geographic and cultural region of the U.S. state of Texas that lies roughly south of—and includes—San Antonio. The southern and western boundary is the Rio Grande, and to the east it is the Gulf of Mexico. The population of th ...

. Once complete, the freeway will begin in Brownsville and head northward before terminating near

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

as both I-69W and I-69E merge into

I-69 Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of eight unconnected segments. The longest segment runs from Evansville, Indiana, northeast to the Canada–United States border, Canadian border in Po ...

toward

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

. For its entire length, I-69E runs concurrently with U.S. Highway 77 (US 77). The route currently exists in two segments: a segment from its southern terminus in Brownsville to the Willacy– Kenedy county line and a shorter segment south of Corpus Christi. The route has one auxiliary Interstate route, I-169 in Brownsville.

Route description

I-69E begins at an at-grade intersection just north of the

Veterans International Bridge at Los Tomates The Veterans International Bridge at Los Tomates is one of three international bridges that span the Mexico–United States border between the cities of Brownsville, Texas, and Matamoros, Tamaulipas. It is also known as simply as the Veterans Bri ...

in Brownsville. I-69E has a concurrency with US 77. I-69E intersects the eastern terminus of I-2 in Harlingen. After leaving

Brownsville–Matamoros Matamoros–Brownsville, also known as Brownsville–Matamoros, or simply as the Borderplex, is one of the six transborder agglomerations along the Mexico–United States border. It is part of the Lower Rio Grande Valley region. The city of M ...

, I-69E temporarily ends and becomes US 77, a four-lane expressway. Another piece of I-69E picks up in Kingsville. I-69E passes through

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

Driscoll O'Driscoll (and its derivative Driscoll) is an Irish surname. It is derived from the Gaelic ''Ó hEidirsceoil''. The O'Driscolls were rulers of the Dáirine sept of the Corcu Loígde until the early modern period; their ancestors were Kings of ...

, and Robstown before terminating at a freeway-to-freeway style interchange with I-37 west of Corpus Christi.

History

A stated goal of the

Texas Department of Transportation The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT ) is a Texas state government agency responsible for construction and maintenance of the state's immense Texas state highway system, state highway system and the support of the state's maritime trans ...

's (TxDOT) I-69 initiative is that "existing suitable freeway sections of the proposed system be designated as I-69 as soon as possible". A bill was introduced and passed by the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

that allows Interstate quality sections of US 59, US 77, and US 281 to be signed as I-69 regardless of whether or not they connected to other Interstate Highways. TxDOT submitted an application to the

Federal Highway Administration The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is a division of the United States Department of Transportation that specializes in highway transportation. The agency's major activities are grouped into two programs, the Federal-aid Highway Program a ...

(FHWA) and the

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) is a standards setting body which publishes specifications, test protocols, and guidelines that are used in highway A highway is any public or private road ...

(AASHTO) to designate of US 59 in

Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the Office of Management and Budget, United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands, is the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical ...

and of US 77 near Corpus Christi as I-69, as these sections are already built to

Interstate Highway standards Standards for Interstate Highways in the United States are defined by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in the publication ''A Policy on Design Standards: Interstate System''. For a certain highway t ...

and connect to other Interstate Highways. In August 2011, TxDOT received approval from the FHWA for a segment of US 77 between I-37 and State Highway 44 (SH 44) near Corpus Christi and was approved by AASHTO in October 2011. Officials held a ceremony on December 5, 2011, to unveil I-69 signs on the Robstown–Corpus Christi section. The FHWA approved the designation for the eastern

Lower Rio Grande Valley Lower Rio Grande Valley (), often referred to as the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) of South Texas, is a region located in the southernmost part of Texas, along the northern bank of the Rio Grande. It is also known locally as the Valley or the 956 (the ...

segment on May 24, 2013, and the Texas Transportation Commission followed suit on May 30, 2013. This action finalized the designations of not only I-69E but also of the sections of I-69C from

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north to the end of the US 281 freeway facility near Edinburg, and also I-2, which is a freeway that runs from Peñitas to Harlingen and connects with I-69C and I-69E. These approvals added over to the

Interstate Highway System The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Hi ...

in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. The signage was installed in mid-2013. Currently, the cluster consisting of the recently designated portions of I-69E, I-69C, and I-2 in the Lower Rio Grande Valley is not connected to the national Interstate network. This situation is slated to be remedied by scheduled projects to complete I-69E along US 77 between Raymondville and Robstown the southern end of the previously signed portion of the I-69 corridor connecting with I-37 west of Corpus Christi. The

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(EPA) approval for the upgrade of the US 77 alignment to Interstate standards, including bypasses of the towns along the routing, was obtained through a finding of no significant impact statement issued on July 13, 2012. During its 2019 Annual Meeting in October 2019, AASHTO approved an extension of the I-69E designation along US 77 from Farm to Market Road 892 (FM 892) to FM 2826 in

Nueces County Nueces County ( ) is located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 353,178, making it the 16th-most populous county in the state. The county seat is Corpus Christi. The county was formed in 1846 from portions o ...

. The extension completes I-69E from I-37 in Calallen to the north end of the Driscoll Bypass. The northbound lanes of the Driscoll Bypass opened in 2021 while the southbound lanes opened on August 16, 2023. An additional bypass is also expected to be constructed around

Rivera Rivera () is the capital of Rivera Department of Uruguay. The border with Brazil joins it with the Brazilian city of Santana do Livramento, which is only a block away from it, at the north end of Route 5 (Uruguay), Route 5. Together, they form an ...

as well. This project received $177.7 million in funding in August 2023 and construction will begin 2027. Most of the projects between Raymondville and Rivera are not funded but still planned. A project to make upgrades near Norias had an official groundbreaking on July 31, 2024; this project is expected to be completed in three to four years. The section of I-69E north of Corpus Christi to Victoria is still in the early stages of development. Currently, plans have been released for I-69E to be built through Odem and then bypass Sinton; further north, it will be built through Woodsboro and then bypass Refugio. The Odem project has received partial funding while the others have received full funding. No other upgrade plans have been released. TxDOT held open houses in Refugio in late October 2023 in order to receive public feedback on the project.

Exit list

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References

External links