The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT ) is a

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

state

government agency A government agency or state agency, sometimes an appointed commission, is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government (bureaucracy) that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, s ...

responsible for construction and maintenance of the state's immense

state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered ...

system and the support of the state's

maritime Maritime may refer to: Geography * Maritime Alps, a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps * Maritime Region, a region in Togo * Maritime Southeast Asia * The Maritimes, the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Princ ...

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...

rail Rail or rails may refer to: Rail transport *Rail transport and related matters *Railway track or railway lines, the running surface of a railway Arts and media Film * ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini * ''Rail'' (1967 fil ...

, and

public transport Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whic ...

ation systems. TxDOT previously administered

vehicle registration Motor vehicle registration is the registration of a motor vehicle with a government authority, either compulsory or otherwise. The purpose of motor vehicle registration is to establish a link between a vehicle and an owner or user of the vehicle. ...

prior to the creation of the

Texas Department of Motor Vehicles The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV) is a state agency of Texas, headquartered in Austin, Texas, Austin. The agency handles vehicle registration and titling, authorizes operating authorities of motor carriers, and gives grants to law e ...

in November 2009. The agency has been headquartered in the Dewitt C. Greer Building in

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

since 1933.

History

The Texas Legislature created the Texas Highway Department in 1916 to administer federal highway construction and maintenance. In 1975, its responsibilities increased when the agency merged with the Texas Mass Transportation Commission, resulting in the formation of the State Department of Highways and Public Transportation. In 1986, the department started using " Don't Mess with Texas" as its slogan to reduce littering on Texas roadways, as part of a statewide advertising campaign. The phrase was prominently shown on road signs on major highways, as well as in television, radio, and print advertisements. The slogan is still in use and remains very popular. In 1991, the Legislature combined the State Department of Highways and Public Transportation, the Department of Aviation, and the Texas Motor Vehicle Commission to create the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). In 1997, the pre-existing Texas Turnpike Authority (TTA) was divided into two successor agencies: the

North Texas Tollway Authority The North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) is a not-for-profit government organization that maintains and operates toll roads, bridges, and tunnels in the North Texas area. Functioning as a political subdivision of the State of Texas under Chap ...

took responsibility for TTA assets in four North Texas counties, while the Turnpike Authority Division of Texas DOT was given jurisdiction over toll facilities in the rest of the state. In 2005, as a result of House Bill 2702 the rail oversight functions of the

Texas Railroad Commission The Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC; also sometimes called the Texas Railroad Commission, TRC) is the state agency that regulates the oil and gas industry, gas utilities, pipeline safety, safety in the liquefied petroleum gas industry, and s ...

were transferred to TxDOT. In 2009, the

was created by the state legislature, taking over some functions from TxDOT. In 2016, the

Texas A&M University Press Texas A&M University Press (also known informally as TAMU Press) is a scholarly publishing house associated with Texas A&M University. It was founded in 1974 and is located in College Station, Texas, in the United States. Overview The Texas A&M ...

published ''MILES and MILES of TEXAS; 100 Years of the Texas Highway Department''.

Administration

TxDOT has approximately 12,000 employees. Marc Williams has served as its executive director since 2021. Williams had served as deputy executive director since 2015. He is assisted by one deputy director, Brandye Hendrickson. The department is organized into 25 geographical districts and 34 divisions.

Districts

TxDOT is one of the state's largest departments in terms of the number of subordinate offices – it maintains 25 geographical districts throughout the state. The large number of departments is needed due to the large size of the state, the widely varying climate and soil conditions affecting public roads, and the differing needs of the local populace (urban vs. suburban vs. rural). In 2010, TxDOT was reorganized into four regions, North, South, East, and West. The regions are designated as Regional Support Centers. The number of districts remained the same. Each district, managed by a district engineer, is responsible for the design, location, construction, and maintenance of its area transportation systems. Local field offices within districts are known as area offices, and many districts also have separate maintenance offices, usually on a county-by-county basis. Functional divisions and offices headquartered in Austin provide administrative and technical support to the districts.

Divisions

Publications

Every month, TxDOT publishes ''

Texas Highways ''Texas Highways'' is a monthly magazine put out by 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 immens ...

'', a magazine aimed at showcasing various aspects of the state, often by providing interesting travel information on a specific stretch of highway (or highways) in the state. TxDOT also publishes the annual ''Texas Travel Guide'', which offers points of interests for all regions of Texas. ''Horizon'' is a quarterly journal focusing on transportation policy issues and financing in particular.

Gallery

File:Texas DOT Austin District Office.jpg, TxDOT Austin District office File:TXDOTHouston0.JPG, One building of the headquarters of TxDOT's

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 ...

district File:TXDOTHouston1.JPG, One building of the headquarters of TxDOT's Houston district Image:GreerBuildingTexDOT2.JPG, Dewitt C. Greer Building, the headquarters of the Texas Department of Transportation in

, is a National Registered Historic Place

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Department of Transportation, Texas State departments of transportation of the United States United States railroad regulation Motor vehicle registration agencies Government agencies established in 1991 1991 establishments in Texas