TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING DESIGN
OUR FIRM
Founded in 1946, PGAL is a national design firm specializing in architecture and engineering for a diverse portfolio of public and private sector clients. Renowned for outstanding client service and attention to detail, we balance innovative, responsive design solutions with a pragmatic, cost-conscious approach. This clientcentered philosophy has earned PGAL repeat business and lasting relationships for more than 80 years.
PGAL’s approach is highly collaborative and tailored to each client and their project’s needs. Each project is led by one of our handson principals and embraced by a carefully selected project team of seasoned engineering professionals that combine technical expertise and decades of experience designing and delivering transportation infrastructure projects.
las vegas
los angeles
san diego
alexandria
PROJECT EXPERIENCE
PGAL has successfully delivered over $2 billion in transportation and infrastructure improvements for local, state, and federal clients. Our project experience includes decades of designing and managing highway improvement projects for over 20 districts of the Texas Department of Transportation consisting of a full range of project types like pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, bridge replacements, rural 2-lane rehabilitation, suburban 4-lane widenings, and urban freeway reconstruction. PGAL’s portfolio of successful projects also includes tollways for toll road authorities, thoroughfares for municipalities, light rail corridors for transit authorities, and roadways and bridges for airports. PGAL’s engineers leverage emerging design and analysis technology to consistently deliver innovative and efficient solutions to each client, and every project.
TXDOT GRAND PARKWAY SEGMENT GB
location: houston, texas
This vital segment of the Grand Parkway toll road was delivered under an accelerated design-build schedule, addressing critical transportation needs in one of Texas’ fastest-growing regions.
As the prime engineering consultant for Segment Gb, which was part of the $1 billion Grand Parkway project, PGAL collaborated with Zachry-Odebrecht Parkway
Builders to design five miles of new four-lane toll road stretching from FM 1314 to US 59.
The scope also included 10 entrance and exit ramps, three miles of two-lane frontage roads, and the widening of US 59 mainlanes.
The project’s compressed nine-month design timeline posed significant challenges. Drawing on extensive experience with TxDOT and tollway infrastructure, PGAL led a coordinated effort involving TxDOT, Montgomery County, MUDs, private developers, utility providers, and construction teams. This proactive, interdisciplinary collaboration ensured the timely resolution of design and utility conflicts while keeping the project on schedule.
Key infrastructure included two 1,000-foot frontage road bridges spanning the White Oak Creek Floodway, two high-capacity direct connector bridges at US 59, and multiple intersecting street overpasses that enhanced regional connectivity and flood resilience.
location: alice, texas
PGAL was prime consultant for this $138 million PS&E project along US 281 in the Corpus Christi District with over 3 miles of new bridges.
The project upgraded the existing divided facility to interstate standards by constructing new four-lane mainlanes with auxiliary lanes, converting the existing mainlanes to frontage roads, designing two new frontage road bridges, and adding new ramps on an accelerated 11-month schedule.
The project required complex bridge geometry, including a 1.1-mile divided mainlane bridge spanning two county roads and a skewed creek through a floodplain
diversion channel between creeks. PGAL in-house bridge team designed all 155 spans of varying bent and beam configurations to avoid poor soils, utilities, and environmentally sensitive areas while optimizing span lengths for constructability and cost efficiency. Additional geometric refinements were made to resolve a sight distance issue at a mainlane curve and superelevating ramp bridges.
Working closely with TxDOT and the adjacent consultant, PGAL demonstrated its problem-solving capabilities, to help the district establish effective workflows for future project successes.
location: victoria, texas
PGAL was the prime consultant on this 5-mile freeway conversion project along US 59/77 in Victoria, TX, completing the final leg of the loop around the city.
The corridor passed through a rural industrial area and involved upgrading the existing two-lane highway to a combination of barrier-divided freeway and divided highway sections. Existing two-way frontage roads were extended and converted to one-way operation to improve safety, traffic flow, and access control.
Bridge design included a new railroad overpass, which PGAL advanced to 30% design early in the process to secure a railroad agreement and address the district’s
top concern. A new superelevated bridge structure was also constructed over Dry Creek in the divided highway section.
The flat terrain posed drainage and grading challenges, particularly in maintaining positive flow around superelevated centerline barriers. PGAL resolved these with careful vertical grade adjustments, super transition refinements, and closely spaced storm sewer inlets along the center barrier to manage flow and limit ponding in the inside shoulder.
WIDENING
location: dewitt county, texas
PGAL was the prime consultant for both the Schematic and PS&E phases of this 10-mile rural widening project along SH 72 in DeWitt County, extending from Nordheim to Yorktown.
The project converted a two-lane highway into a four-lane undivided facility with left-turn lanes at key intersections along a high-volume freight corridor. PGAL led the design effort from the early stages of planning when the project was conceived as a Super 2, through to construction completion. Located in the Eagle Ford energy sector, this project involved extensive utility challenges, including eight major oil and gas pipelines, crossing and running parallel to the project, with multiple
active well sites along the ROW. To minimize the impacts of a significantly wider project, PGAL evaluated multiple routes, alignments, and lane configurations, ultimately developing a combination of innovative design solutions to reduce utility relocations and environmental impacts.
PGAL also designed new bridges over Smith Creek and Cabeza Creek that avoided wetland impacts and raised the bridges out of the floodplain. The new Cabeza Creek bridge was designed in a new location made possible by a realignment that eliminated a design waiver for a sharp curve and avoided dozens of reimbursable pipeline conflicts.
PGAL was the prime consultant on this 3.5-mile urban/ rural widening project along FM 1488 between FM 1774 and FM 149 in Montgomery County.
The project reconstructed the existing two-lane asphalt roadway into a five-lane concrete curb-and-gutter highway and utilized storm sewer improvements in the urban section, and open-ditch in the rural portion. Other major improvements included a new 410-foot bridge over Mill Creek in a Zone AE floodplain and a complex at-grade Union Pacific Railroad crossing located between two signalized intersections.
To support pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, PGAL
designed separated sidewalks and designated bike lanes within the narrow ROW that provided crucial bike and ped mobility for the surrounding subdivisions, schools, and commercial centers.
Drainage improvements were challenging and PGAL’s in-house team designed in-line detention with oversized storm sewer, which avoided schedule impacts associated with off-site ponds and ROW acquisition.
WIDENING
location: cuero, texas
PGAL was the prime consultant for this 12-mile rural widening project in DeWitt County near Cuero, Texas.
The project converted the existing two-lane highway into a Super 2 facility with alternating passing lanes. This addressed increased truck traffic and improved safety for local residents and regional travelers.
Key safety improvements included metal beam guard fence upgrades, bridge rail enhancements, culvert extensions and bridge class culvert improvements. PGAL worked closely with the Yoakum District to select the best locations for passing lanes based on traffic analysis and safety needs. A critical safety measure was the design of a
four-lane section at strategic points to mitigate risks at the ends of passing lanes.
Multi-phase traffic control plans were developed to maintain two lanes of traffic open throughout construction, especially around multiple culvert locations. The project included 27 culvert replacements and extensions, including a challenging low-fill 6-barrel bridge-class culvert that required innovative traffic control sequencing for minimal traffic disruption.
location: sulphur springs, texas
PGAL served as the prime consultant for this 3-mile rural project along SH 11 in the Paris District near Sulphur Springs, TX.
The project involved pavement rehabilitation and shoulder widening along the existing alignment, with a new location re-alignment segment routed through greenfield terrain to avoid impacts to an adjacent residential neighborhood.
PGAL’s scope included schematics, roadway design, crossculvert and ditch design, and utility coordination.
The project team coordinated closely with the district to avoid utility conflicts and minimize property impacts along the constrained corridor.
Design efforts focused on meeting 3R criteria, improving drainage, and enhancing safety while balancing the challenges of terrain, access, and limited ROW. The project was delivered on schedule and helped TxDOT address long-standing operational and safety needs in this rural section of the district.
location: abilene, texas
PGAL was the prime consultant for this $5 million pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure project along SH 351, adjacent to Abilene Christian University (ACU).
The project included 3 miles of shared-use paths and on-road designated bike lanes, widening of 4 bridges, installation of customized curb ramps, crosswalks, pedestrian refuge islands, and pedestrian signals at two major intersections. A key element of the design was enhancing safety for the large volume of students walking and biking to ACU, particularly during high-traffic campus events. PGAL designed innovative high-speed bike ramps at Judge Ely Blvd. to allow cyclists to safely transition from striped, buffered on-road bike lanes to a 10-foot-
wide shared-use path. These ramps were designed with a gradual longitudinal slope to support a 15 mph bicycle design speed.
PGAL also addressed a unique drainage challenge involving an on-street paved drainage ditch. To safely carry pedestrian traffic across the high-flow ditch, the team designed a 7’x3’ box culvert. The design included pedestrian handrails, compliant 2% cross slopes, and a 60inch turning space to ensure accessibility and safety. PGAL led stakeholder and public meetings, coordinating closely with ACU and local agencies to build community support and deliver a safe, context-sensitive design.
TXDOT US 290 / SH 36 SCHEMATIC –FREEWAY INTERCHANGE
location: brenham, texas
PGAL was the prime consultant for this high-profile 5-mile schematic that included a multi-level interchange, highly-commercialized urban freeway sections, and a rural divided-highway portion.
Located on the west side of Brenham, Texas, this project served as a much needed direct bypass route around Brenham for traffic traveling between Houston and Austin along US 290. PGAL developed multiple alternatives to balance the high level of service needed for bypass traffic with local connectivity. Five major alternatives were developed by PGAL and analyzed using multiple operational analysis methods and comprehensive traffic modeling of the corridor. These alternatives included an
elevated Diverging-Diamond interchange over SH 36, R-Cuts (Restricted Cross U-turns) through the rolling terrain of the rural section, and an innovative hybrid mainlane frontage road bridge for continuous frontage road connectivity over the Union Pacific Railroad.
PGAL also managed the extensive public involvement and right-of-way efforts engaging impacted property owners, businesses, and the City of Brenham, culminating in 77 parcel acquisitions. Dozens of individual MAPOs (meetings of affected property owners) were led by PGAL, communicating the project impacts and improvements to stakeholders and gathering public input to ensure the preferred alternative aligned with community needs.
FM 2854 4-LANE RECONSTRUCTION + WIDENING
location: conroe, texas
PGAL was the prime consultant for this 2.2-mile project in Conroe, TX in the rapidly developing area between Loop 336 and IH-45. This project involves the reconstruction of the existing rural 2-lane highway to an urban 5-lane curbed highway with storm sewer and shared-use lanes.
All elements of the roadway, bridge, storm sewer, and retaining walls were designed by PGAL in-house. This included phased construction of a new 140’ bridge over Alligator Creek. The extensive storm sewer design incorporated in-line detention and 2 new detention ponds. A special flexible pavement zone was also designed to mitigate the crossing fault line.
After cost-prohibitive municipal utility relocations cancelled the project, PGAL proactively developed an alternative design with a reduced footprint to meet the needs of the City, State, Railroad, and utility owners. After extensive coordination with TxDOT and stakeholders, the project was restarted and succesfully completed.
PGAL also led the coordination efforts with the City of Conroe for three signalized intersections, including two new signals warranted by the new residential and commercial growth that incorporated preemption for the two at-grade RR crossings.
