BEST ROAD THROUGH HOUSTON, TX

Houston is not really that bad since the West side or Katy freeway has been widened. I have to go thru at times in an 18 wheeler usually mid morning and traffic moves right along. Just avoid early morning and afternoon rush hours.

We dread driving through Houston. It has less congestion and found smoother flow on 610 bypass south. It adds a bit of mileage but the stress level is much more tolerable skirting the madness through Houston proper. Stay in the middle lane, change lanes about a mile ahead of time, and leave plenty of room between you and the one in front of you. Once you hit the west side. Pull over and take a breather.....you'll need it.

snail wrote:
Thanks, I was afraid I 10 was going to be the choice. We lived in the Houston area in the mid 70's and remember how it was then. I can only guess what the traffic will be like now. We will plan to make the trip across Houston around noon. Just one more of those "career development opportunities" for us RVers,

If you think it was bad in the 70's you should have been here in the 90's!

You'll be happy to hear that I-10 on the west side (the Katy freeway) was greatly expanded a few years ago. You'll be fine.

Thanks, I was afraid I 10 was going to be the choice. We lived in the Houston area in the mid 70's and remember how it was then. I can only guess what the traffic will be like now. We will plan to make the trip across Houston around noon. Just one more of those "career development opportunities" for us RVers,

I'd say just bite the bullet and use I-10. The Beltway might be a tad faster, but you might end up paying over $30 in tolls.

Once you get past San Antonio, start looking for a good place to fill up at 1/2 a tank... and stop anywhere when near 1/3 a tank.

Traveled I-10 yesterday from San Antonio as far as Ozona, and no problem with fuel. You may want to stop after 2-3 hours anyway to stretch those legs.

Like already stated stay on I-10 and do not get off on the outer loop which I think is 1960 as the tolls will kill you. It is like $3.75 every few miles. It did not take us too many tolls before we jumped off and found another route.

Since you want to stay on I-10 to get to Big Bend, just stay on it. There are loops and by passes around Houston, but if you are not familiar with them, they can be confusing and you can get caught short needing to do a lane change. Even during heavy traffic, you are looking at around 45 minutes to get through Houston and it's certainly not worth drive "hundreds of miles" out of the way to avoid it as a previous poster said. The highway signs are painted on the pavement, all you have to do is follow them. I-10 is for the most part good road and it's not a bad drive. The worst part is the boredom of driving across West Texas. The only tip I have is going across west Texas, stop and top off your fuel when you get a chance. There's no guarantee that the fuel stop you read about in Next Exit is going to be open.

IMHO there is NO best route thru Houston! We avoid it, even if we have to drive hundreds of miles to do so.

Unfortunately, your best bet is just to stay on I-10. When making this trip, my strategy has always been to avoid Baton Route, Lake Charles, Beaumont and Houston during peak times. That's about a 4 hour drive without stops. That means your either traveling on a weekend or you plan the trip to be hitting the west side of Houston no later than 3PM and perhaps earlier on Friday. I-10 does have HOV lane, and I think the HOV part opens at 2PM.