Texas State Highway 44

State Highway 44
Route information
Maintained by TxDOT
Length:	128.9 mi[1] (207.4 km)
Existed:	by 1938 – present
Major junctions
West end:	US 83 near Encinal
	I-35 in Encinal I-69W / US 59 near Freer I-69C / US 281 near Alice I-69E / US 77 in Robstown
East end:	SH 358 in Corpus Christi
Highway system
Highways in Texas Interstate US State Toll Loops Spurs FM/RM Park Rec ← I-44 I-45 → ← FM 862 FM 863 RM 864 →

State Highway 44 (SH 44) is a Texas state highway that runs from west of Encinal to Corpus Christi, Texas. This highway is also known as the Cesar Chavez Memorial Highway outside the city limits of Robstown, Banquete, Agua Dulce, Alice, and Corpus Christi in Nueces and Jim Hogg counties.

History

SH 44 was originally proposed in 1919 as a connector route between Waco and Giddings. By 1926, construction was continuing on the highway, with the southern terminus extended south to LaGrange, and was concurrent with U.S. Highway 77 (US 77). By 1938, this route had been fully converted to US 77, with a new designation from Sinton to Alice, via Robstown over former SH 128. In 1939, the section from Sinton to Robstown was reassigned as an extension of SH 96 designation. The eastern terminus was shifted to Corpus Christi. The western terminus was then extended to Freer in 1940. The section west of Freer approximately 56.4 miles (90.8 km) was Farm to Market Road 863 (FM 863)^[2] which traveled west to US 83 in Webb County, today's SH 44 terminus.

From 1948 to 1953, FM 863 went from Beaver Creek to the town of Hilda which became RM 648 and is now RM 783. FM 863 was designated over a new route and part of FM 133 from Encinal to Freer in 1953. Before 1955, FM 863 ended at the Webb–LaSalle county Line. In 1990, FM 863 mileage was transferred to SH 44.

Possible future

A bill has been submitted by House Representative Blake Farenthold to Congress to approve turning SH 44 into an Interstate Highway. The bill is called H.R. 4523 or 44 to 69 Act of 2014.^[3] The plans are to turn SH 44 into an interstate highway between Freer (where it will intersect I-69W) and Corpus Christi, Texas (about 73 miles (117 km)) in order to have a network of interstate highways connecting Laredo (the largest inland port on the United States–Mexican border) with Corpus Christi (a major seaport and manufacturing center). In Corpus Christi, SH 44 is already at interstate highway standard and it is a four-lane divided highway westward to the city of San Diego, Texas. The 23 miles (37 km) from San Diego to Freer is a two-lane section.^[4]

Major intersections

County	Location	mi	km	Destinations	Notes
Webb	​	0.0	0.0	US 83 – Laredo, Carrizo Springs	Western terminus
La Salle	Encinal			BL I-35 south (Main Street) to I-35 south – Encinal, Laredo	West end of I-35 Bus. overlap
				I-35 – Cotulla, San Antonio, Laredo	East end of I-35 Bus. overlap; I-35 exit 39
Duval	​			US 59 south – Laredo	West end of US 59 overlap; Future I-69W South.
	Freer			SH 16 – Tilden, Hebbronville, Falfurrias
	​			US 59 north – George West, Houston	East end of US 59 overlap; Future I-69W North.
	​			FM 3196 south / County Road 330 – Los Reyes, La Rosita, Benavides
	San Diego			SH 359 west – Hebbronville	West end of SH 359 overlap
Jim Wells	​			FM 625 east
	​			FM 2507 south
	​			US 281 – George West, Premont, Falfurrias	Interchange (future I-69C)
	Alice			FM 1554 south (Beam Station Road)
				Bus. US 281 – Falfurrias, George West	Interchange
				FM 665 east (Cameron Street)
				FM 1931 north (Flournoy Road) – Airport
	​			SH 359 east – Orange Grove, Mathis	East end of SH 359 overlap; interchange
	​			FM 2044 west
Nueces	Agua Dulce			FM 70 – Sandia, Bishop
	Banquete			FM 666 – Mathis, Driscoll
	Robstown			Bus. SH 44 east (Western Avenue)
				Bus. US 77 north (via Avenue J) – Victoria	interchange
				I-69E / US 77	interchange
				Bus. SH 44 west (East Avenue A)
				I-69E south / US 77 south	interchange
	​			FM 1694 – Petronila
	Violet			FM 24 north (Violet Road)
	​			FM 3386 north
	Corpus Christi			FM 2292 (Clarkwood Road / Bus. SH 44 east)	interchange; west end of freeway
				Bus. SH 44 west (Agnes Street)	direct westbound exit only
				Corpus Christi International Airport	access to FM 763 south
				Hopkins Road	direct westbound exit only
				Talbert Road / Agnes Street (Bus. SH 44 east)	no direct westbound exit (signed at Heinsohn Road)
				Heinsohn Road
				SH 358 to I-37 – Bayfront, NAS, CCAD, Padre Island	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access

References

1. ↑ Texas Department of Transportation,
2. ↑ Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "Farm to Market Road No. 863". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. 
3. ↑ Congress.gov: H.R. 4523
4. ↑ Bill Would Add SH 44 to I-69 Priority Corridor