BRYAN, Texas — Voters in Bryan gave lopsided approval Tuesday to a charter amendment that calls for the medians on Texas Avenue to come out, though the city says the ballot result by itself will not clear the road.
Unofficial Nov. 3 returns show 20,007 votes for the amendment and 5,507 against, a margin of roughly 78% to 22%. The Bryan City Council is set to canvass the results at its Nov. 17 meeting, after which the language will be written into the charter.
Ballot language applies the change to a busy commercial section of the avenue, running from Rosemary Drive up to State Highway 21. The Texas Department of Transportation put the medians in during 2021 with the stated goals of improving safety and easing congestion, and it still controls the roadway.
That control is the sticking point. A legal opinion the city released Oct. 13 concluded Bryan probably cannot remove the medians unless the state agency consents, and that enforcing the amendment would likely take either a judge or the Texas Attorney General weighing in.
Money is a second obstacle. City officials put the price of removal at about $8 million and say a new funding source would be needed.
The amendment reached the ballot after a resident petition drew nearly 2,500 valid signatures over the summer. City leaders say they will carry the vote to state transportation officials as a directive from residents, and they are separately looking at ideas such as adding a signal where Garden Acres Boulevard meets Brookside Drive, plus wider paved areas to make U-turns safer.
Filed under: College Station TX Politics News
