Conceptualized in the early 1960s, Six segments of the planned 184-mile Grand Parkway (State Highway 99) loop circling the Houston metro region are now open, and drivers can travel nonstop through the northwest side of Houston from I-10 near Katy to I-69/US59 north of Houston. In addition to helping alleviate traffic congestion in some of the area’s fastest-growing communities, the Grand Parkway provides additional hurricane and emergency evacuation routes for the greater Houston area. Once completed, the Grand Parkway’s 11 segments—designated A through I-2—will travel through seven counties.
In 1990, Bob Collie asked Pat Maddox, who went on to become 3rd Director of the West Houston Association, to put him in touch with the Mayor of Houston to discuss the details of the first segment of The Grand Parkway which would be placed in West Houston.