A major crash shut down northbound I-45 at Howard Drive and Bellfort Avenue around 6:17 AM on Wednesday, June 10, backing up traffic during the morning commute.
Responding officers worked to clear the roadway. Traffic was sluggish as crews worked the scene, with significant delays extending north into the morning drive. If you're heading that direction, expect backups or consider alternate routes: the Hardy Toll Road, SH-249 to the northwest, or local streets via Airline Drive.
This location is experiencing a persistent crash pattern. According to LTA real-time incident data, I-45 Gulf northbound at Howard Drive recorded 31 crashes in the past 30 days—19 of them major incidents. The corridor shows its heaviest activity between 6 and 7 AM, though crashes occur throughout the day and night. Over the past 90 days, the stretch has logged 96 total incidents; in the past 12 months, 142.
State crash records paint a broader picture. According to TxDOT CRIS public crash records since January 2020, this corridor near Howard Drive has seen 851 crashes. Contributing factors as recorded by investigating officers show "Failed To Control Speed" cited in 304 of those incidents—the most common factor by far. The hit-and-run rate at the location stands at 13.9%, meaning roughly one in seven crashes involved a driver who left the scene.
The weather was clear and 80 degrees at the time of this morning's crash, so conditions weren't a factor. Authorities handled the incident according to standard procedures.
Check back for updates as the incident clears.
IH-45 Gulf Northbound at Howard Dr/Bellfort Ave
Harris County, Texas
This report was produced by LTA's editor-designed production system under the executive editorial direction of Dennis R. Mundy, Executive Editor. The system combines our proprietary data pipeline with AI-assisted drafting to deliver verified incident coverage to LTA's editorial standards.