Highways

Residents in the League City/Houston Bay Area have convenient access to interstate and major US highways throughout the entire Houston metropolitan area. Interstate Highway (IH) 45 passes through the center of League City, giving access to other transportation routes such as IH 10, US 59, and US 290. These highways connect to three concentric loop expressways around Houston. Loop 610 is a 38.3-mile roadway at a radius of six miles from the Houston central business district. Sam Houston Parkway (Beltway 8) is an 88-mile facility at a 12-mile radius and State Highway 99 (Grand Parkway) is a 172-mile expressway, under construction, at a radius of 25 – 30 miles. The Grand Parkway’s southeast corridor includes a probable alignment with FM 646 in League City.

Traffic Counts

The following Average Daily Traffic counts (ADT) are the latest 2005 counts from the Texas Department of Transportation.

There are more than 1,000 motor freight carriers operating in the Houston area, making Houston’s trucking industry among the largest in the nation. Houston outranks major population centers, like Boston, major intermodal ports, like Seattle, and major manufacturing centers, like Pittsburgh, in the size of its trucking industry.

Metro Area	Days in Transit		Metro Area	Days in Transit
Atlanta	2		Los Angeles	4
Baltimore	3		Miami	3
Boston	4		New York	3.5
Chicago	3		Philadelphia	3
Dallas/Ft. Worth	same day		Phoenix	3
Denver	3		San Francisco	4
Detroit	3		Seattle	5
Kansas City	2		Washington DC	3

The Houston Airport System is the 4th largest multi-airport system in the United States and the 6th largest in the world. Twenty-four airlines (14 domestic, 10 foreign flag) fly out of Houston, providing daily nonstop and direct service to 110 domestic and 48 international destinations, including the major cities of Europe, Central America, South America, Canada, Mexico, and Asia. Three primary airports provide air service for the Houston area: George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), north of Houston Central Business District (CBD) and approximately 45 minutes from League City, garners 70% of the system’s total traffic. Hobby Airport (HOU), south of the CBD and approximately 15-20 minutes from League City, accounts for 30%. Ellington Field (EFD), south of Hobby and roughly 8 miles from League City, is both a commercial airport and a center for aerospace development.

Bush Intercontinental Airport Houston (IAH)

IAH is the 7th largest international passenger gateway in the nation and 9th busiest airport in the country for total passengers. IAH offers non-stop service to more than 115 destinations within the US and 73 direct and non-stop international destinations. Houston headquartered Continental Airlines schedules over 700 flights per day from its largest hub airport, IAH.

Passenger airlines serving Houston at Bush Intercontinental Airport include: AeroMexico, Air Canada, Air France, American Airlines, Aviacsa, British Airways, Cayman Airways, China Airlines, Continental, Continental Express, Delta Airlines, Frontier Airlines KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Lufthansa Airlines, Northwest Airlines, TACA, United Airlines, US Airways.

Airfreight services include: AA Cargo, Aeromexpress, Air Canada Cargo, Air France Cargo, America West Cargo, BAX Global, British Airways Cargo, Cargolux, China Airlines Cargoitalia, Continental Cargo, DHL/Airborne Express, Delta Airlines Cargo, FedEx, Frontier Cargo, Japan Airlines, KLM Cargo, Korean Air Cargo; Lan Chile Cargo, Lufthansa Cargo, Martinair Cargo, Northwest Cargo, Polar Air Cargo, Polar Air, Polet Air Company, Saudi Arabian Airlines, Singapore Airlines Cargo, Southwest Airlines Cargo, Taca Cargo, US Airways, US Postal Service, UPS.

William P. Hobby Airport (HOU)

William P. Hobby Airport offers nonstop or direct service to more than 30 destinations throughout the U.S. Hobby Airport is the largest hub airport for Southwest Airlines. It is the 42nd busiest airport in the United States for total passengers.

Passenger airlines serving Houston Hobby Airport include: AirTran Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines.

Ellington Field (EFD)

Ellington Field is 10 miles (15 - 20 minutes) north of League City on State Highway 3. A joint use civil/military airport, Ellington Field was acquired by the City of Houston in 1984 and now supports the operations of the United States military, The Department of Homeland Security, NASA, and a variety of general aviation tenants. The airport is home to the annual Wings Over Houston air show and is also where many of the astronauts from Johnson Space Center receive their ongoing space training. Commissioned as a military aviation training facility in 1917, Ellington Field today consists of three state of the art active runways and provides 24-hour air traffic control services. It is also home to many tenants including the Texas Army National Guard, Texas Air National Guard, Delta Connection Academy, US Coast Guard, and NASA.

League City is served by Union Pacific Railroad, operating one main line through the City with daily service. Shipping times to major market areas are generally: Midwest (St. Louis or Chicago) 7 days, southern areas (New Orleans) 5 days, and West Coast (LA or San Francisco) 10 days.

Port of Houston

Among U.S. ports, the Port of Houston is the world’s sixth largest port in terms of total tonnage. It ranks first in the U.S. in foreign waterborne tonnage, second in total tonnage, and 10th in the world in total tonnage. During 2006, more than 7,500 ships called on the Port of Houston, moving more than 200 million tons of cargo.

The Houston Ship Channel, a 52-mile inland waterway, connects Houston with the sea lanes of the world. Its turning basin is 4 miles east of Houston’s CBD. In 2005, the Port of Houston Authority celebrated the completion of a widening and deepening project. The project reduces collision and oil spill risks by widening the channel to 530 ft. (from 400 ft.) and deepening it to 45 ft. (from 40 ft). Greater capacity was also provided by the addition of barge lanes constructed on either side of the channel to a depth of 12 feet to allow slower barge traffic to navigate the channel. The ship channel empties into Galveston Bay where access is available to the ports at Bayport, Texas City, and Galveston.

Port of Galveston

The Port of Galveston is the oldest commercial enterprise in the State of Texas, the oldest port in the State of Texas and the oldest port in the Gulf of Mexico west of New Orleans. The Port owns and operates for hire, public wharves, transit sheds, open and covered storage facilities, warehouses, and freight handling facilities. The Port has an authorized minimum depth of 40 ft., is 1,200 ft. wide at its narrowest point, and provides direct access to the open Gulf of Mexico.

Port of Texas City

The county’s transportation network is geared toward the ports of Texas City and Galveston with numerous railroad and truck lines operating in these port areas. The Port of Texas City is the eighth largest port in the U.S. and the third largest in Texas with water borne tonnage exceeding 78 million net tons.

Construction has begun on a container terminal, commonly known as Texas City International Terminal (TCIT). TCIT will include 400 acres of container yard, 6,000 feet of berth, a channel dredge depth of 45 feet, and a container volume capacity of more than 2.45 million containers.

Companies located in League City are served by United Parcel Service (UPS) which has a facility located in League City at SH 96 and IH 45. A Federal Express office is located nearby in the City of Dickinson.