Ferrovial, the global infrastructure giant headquartered in Madrid, has been named Apparent Best Value Proposer by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to design, build, and maintain the SH 99 Grand Parkway Segment B-1 project southeast of Houston, Texas. The award is conditional, pending negotiation of final terms, TxDOT public hearings to disclose project financial information, and FHWA concurrence, with full contract execution expected in July 2026. Valued at approximately $1.47 billion, the nearly 15-mile corridor will span Brazoria and Galveston Counties and represents a defining moment in the ongoing completion of what is already the longest highway loop in the United States at 184 miles. Delivered under a design-build contract with a capital maintenance term of up to 15 years (an initial 5-year term with two possible 5-year extensions), the scope covers four new tolled lanes operated by TxDOT, discontinuous frontage roads, direct connectors at SH 35 and the new SH 99 alignment, and operational upgrades to SH 35. The project will serve the fast-growing communities of Alvin, League City, and the surrounding Gulf Coast corridor, easing chronic congestion, strengthening regional travel reliability, and critically, bolstering emergency and hurricane evacuation capacity for one of America’s most storm-exposed metropolitan regions. Final contract execution is expected this summer, with substantial completion targeted for winter 2031 to 2032.

Completing the Loop: A Corridor Decades in the Making

The Grand Parkway was first conceptualized in the early 1960s to provide a circumferential highway serving the greater Houston region’s extraordinary population growth. Six decades on, construction continues on key segments of the loop, with Segment B-1 forming part of the southeast arc, running from south of Farm to Market Road 2403 to FM 646 — a stretch of approximately 15 miles. Other outstanding segments of the Grand Parkway currently have no identified timeline for environmental clearance or construction funding, meaning full loop completion remains a long-term prospect. Ferrovial is no stranger to this corridor. The company previously led the Grand Parkway Infrastructure joint venture alongside Webber and Granite Construction Inc., completing Segments H, I-1, and I-2 across 52.5 miles northeast of Houston under a $1.28 billion contract awarded in 2017 and opened in 2022. That earlier work, which earned recognition at the Engineering News-Record Best Projects awards, gives the company a substantial institutional advantage on the new southeastern extension. The scale of investment in SH 99 as a whole reflects a broader Texas pattern of aggressive toll road expansion to absorb surging suburban demand. A comparable programme can be found in North Texas, where the North Tarrant Express, delivered as a public-private partnership (P3) concession model, expanded highway capacity across five interconnected corridors. As Houston’s southeast suburbs absorb continued migration from both within Texas and internationally, the completion of the Grand Parkway loop is widely seen by planners and logistics operators alike as one of the most consequential transport investments in the Sun Belt.

Project Fact Sheet

• Project Name: SH 99 Grand Parkway Segment B-1
• Location: Brazoria and Galveston Counties, southeast of Houston, Texas, USA
• Project Value: Approximately USD 1.47 billion
• Client/Owner: Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)
• Main Contractor: Ferrovial Construction (Apparent Best Value Proposer; final contract execution expected July 2026)
• Key Components: Four new tolled lanes, discontinuous frontage roads, direct connectors at SH 35 and new SH 99, operational upgrades to SH 35
• Procurement Model: Design-Build with capital maintenance term of up to 15 years (5-year initial term with two possible 5-year extensions)
• Construction Start: Late 2026/early 2027 (contract execution anticipated July 2026)
• Expected Completion: Winter 2031 to 2032
• Strategic Impact: Forms part of the southeast arc of the 184-mile Grand Parkway loop; strengthens hurricane evacuation routing for the greater Houston region
• Environmental/Social Features: Enhanced emergency evacuation capacity; improved regional mobility for communities including Alvin, League City, and Gulf Coast suburbs

Project Team

• Client/Owner: Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)
• Main Contractor: Ferrovial Construction
• US Construction Subsidiary: Webber LLC (Ferrovial subsidiary; previously involved in Grand Parkway Segments H, I-1 and I-2)
• Financing Body: Grand Parkway Transportation Corporation (GPTC); likely supported by TIFIA loan mechanisms consistent with prior Grand Parkway funding structures
• Regulatory Authority: Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT); Texas Transportation Commission
• Tolling Operator: Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)

About the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) Grand Parkway Segment B-1 Project.

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is the state agency responsible for planning, building, operating, and maintaining the transportation system that connects communities and supports economic growth across Texas. As part of that mission, TxDOT is advancing the Grand Parkway (State Highway 99), an approximate 184‑mile outer loop surrounding the Houston metropolitan area.

The Grand Parkway Segment B‑1 project extends 15 miles from FM 646 to south of FM 2403 through Brazoria and Galveston counties. The scope includes constructing two new, 14-mile-long  SH 99 tolled lanes in each direction with discontinuous frontage roads, building two direct connectors at the SH 35 interchange, and adding approximately 6 miles of non-tolled operational improvements to SH 35. The project is expected to improve regional mobility, enhance safety, provide alternative evacuation routes, and accommodate economic growth in rapidly growing Southeast Texas communities