Public comment set to begin for 2025 TxDOT Unified Transportation Program draft

BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) – The 2025 draft of the Texas Department of Transportation’s Unified Transportation Program (UTP) is set to be released to the public on July 5.

The document details the agency’s 10-year plan for various transportation-related projects and associated funding. The UTP is updated and approved yearly, but officials said it’s not a set budget.

It’s no small feat to assemble the document, TxDOT officials said it requires input from stakeholders at state, regional and local levels.

“TxDOT staff has worked closely with their MPO partners and the Texas Transportation Commission to prioritize and select projects in their regions based on regional needs,” TxDOT official Christopher Lee said during a public hearing.

While many of the projects in the plan are statewide, there are several taking place locally.

The 2025 UTP draft proposes $3.4 billion in funding for the Bryan district, which covers the seven counties in the Brazos Valley and Milam County.

The Bryan/College Station Metropolitan Planning Organization works to select projects for the urbanized part of the Bryan district. While there are many local projects included in the UTP, executive director Daniel Rudge said a major one could receive more funding in 2025.

“They will be adding additional funding to the State Highway 6 project, that seems to go up by about $50 million every six months,” he said.

The Highway 6 project, totaling nearly $600 million, will widen Highway 6 and make safety improvements. That project, alongside one to build the Bush-Wellborn interchange, are two of the largest local ones included in the UTP.

Rudge said the interchange project will make it so cars don’t have to interact with the railroad crossing at Bush-Wellborn.

It’s a long process guided by TxDOT and the Texas Transportation Commission, which ultimately approves the UTP.

“It establishes the long-term needs and goals for the state transportation system, which set the direction for the subsequent plans,” Lee added.

The 2025 UTP cannot be approved without public comment on the proposed projects. The plan is estimated to propose over $104 billion in spending across several areas of transportation, with many of them focused on safety and connectivity statewide.

In a preview meeting held Tuesday, TxDOT shared a breakdown of some of the proposed projects, and updates to how previous funding will be distributed.

A month-long public comment period opens up on the same day the draft is released. At the end of August, the Texas Transportation Commission will meet to approve the UTP draft.

TxDOT officials said high public engagement in community projects may increase the chance of those projects receiving funding.

”Every scenario involves trade-offs, but ultimately the commission selects the distribution that is projected to achieve the best balance of outcomes in safety, preservation, and system performance,” Lee said.

Information on how to submit public comments on the UTP can be found at this link.

Below is a fact sheet from TxDOT with more information about the UTP, and the presentation slides from the July 2 meeting previewing the 2025 UTP draft.