A serious vehicle collision brought traffic to a crawl on northbound I-45 near Exit 60A at 4:21 PM on Saturday, February 14, 2026. Emergency crews responded to the crash in Harris County, creating significant backups during what should have been a manageable afternoon commute window.
The timing couldn't have been worse for Saturday travelers. With Valentine's Day plans already underway across the Houston area, drivers heading north on I-45 faced substantial delays radiating back toward downtown. Those with flexibility should consider taking the Eastex Freeway northbound or routing through surface streets via 59 North as alternatives. The Sam Houston Tollway also offers a longer but potentially faster bypass for drivers in the south Houston area trying to reach north side destinations.
Exit 60A sits in a corridor that typically handles heavy weekend traffic, particularly during holiday periods when families head north toward The Woodlands and beyond. The stretch near this exit has seen its share of incidents over the years, making it a critical chokepoint during peak travel times. Nearby landmarks include the area between the Greens and Greenspoint, with the interchange serving as a major gateway for drivers transitioning between I-45 and local roads in north-central Houston.
The crash occurred in the northbound lanes, affecting traffic in that direction most severely. Authorities hadn't cleared the scene by mid-afternoon, suggesting the incident involved significant vehicle damage or injuries that required extended emergency response time. Drivers using I-45 North should anticipate extended travel times and consider postponing non-urgent trips until the roadway reopens fully. Spillover congestion was expected to back up into the downtown interchange area and affect on-ramp access points throughout central Houston.
In the four weeks before this crash, 9 incidents had piled up at this location.
In the 105 days that followed, 102 more crashes occurred at this location. 63 of those crashes reached major severity. Among those, 3 crash was fatal.
Crashes have come more frequently at this location since this incident.
A stretch of consecutive days brought several crashes to this location.
Combined, those numbers put the location among the most active in the county.
Data current as of May 24, 2026.
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.