21.6 Hurricane Evacuation Routes
The State of Texas has designated various highways and freeways as official hurricane evacuation routes to facilitate the flow of traffic during a hurricane evacuation. These routes are specifically designed to handle the increased volume of vehicles evacuating from the coastal areas affected by hurricanes.
Refer to the
on TxDOT.gov for additional information.
21.6.1 Hurricane Evacuation Lanes
Evacuation lanes are designated emergency shoulders along hurricane evacuation routes that can be temporarily converted into travel lanes to increase capacity during an evacuation event. These shoulders may also be referred to as "EvacuLanes" and are typically wider than a traditional shoulder.
When determining the EvacuLane width, designers should consider bridges and any adjacent railings or barriers along the edge of the shoulder.
The recommended minimum width for an EvacuLane is 12-ft
.21.6.2 Contraflow Lanes
Contraflow lanes are designated lanes that temporarily allow vehicles to travel in the opposite direction of a lane’s normal traffic flow. Similar to EvacuLanes, contraflow lanes are implemented during an evacuation event when all traffic lanes move toward inland safety and away from the gulf coast. The contraflow operation roughly doubles the number of lanes available for evacuation traffic.