Cameron County wants input on a highway that could lead to SPI’s second causeway

A proposed 21.5-mile highway that could help create a new route toward South Padre Island’s planned second causeway will go before the public Thursday as Cameron County transportation officials continue working toward a preferred route.

The Cameron County Regional Mobility Authority will host a public meeting from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 27, at the Rio Hondo Civic Center to discuss the Outer Parkway and gather public feedback.

The proposed four-lane divided highway would run from I-69E/U.S. 77 near the northern Cameron County line east to FM 1847 and connect with General Brant Road.

The Outer Parkway would not itself reach South Padre Island.

Instead, CCRMA’s regional planning maps show the Outer Parkway alongside other proposed transportation corridors extending east toward the coast. Those broader plans include SH 104, the separate project that would build a second causeway to South Padre Island.

The SH 104 project would span about 17.6 miles, including an approximately eight-mile bridge connecting the mainland and South Padre Island.

CCRMA says the Outer Parkway would improve east-west travel in northern Cameron County, add roadway capacity and provide another hurricane evacuation route.

The project is still in the planning stages.

Environmental work and preliminary engineering are ongoing, while right-of-way and utility coordination, design and funding remain pending. CCRMA was working toward selecting a technically preferred alternative when it released its July project update, with a final schematic projected for this fall.

That same July 2026 CCRMA project status presentation put the estimated construction cost at about $426.3 million. The figure could change as planning and design advance.

Thursday’s meeting gives residents and property owners a chance to review the proposed plans and provide feedback while the route is still being developed.