When discussing construction issues on our area roadways, it might feel like areas inside the 610 Loop get all the coverage. After all, traffic in the core of the city does tend to affectthe greatest number of Houstonians. But that doesn't mean we all don't recognize the sacrifices our neighbors well outside the city make on a daily basis. Your commute is brutal enough. Must you also endure the pain or road construction? Well, yes, you must. This is Houston.

This weekend, our focus turns to a pair of popular suburbs: Pearland and The Woodlands. For the folks in Pearland, it is the expansion of SH-288 that may suck, but is expected to be done within the next year. In The Woodlands with the North Freeway, well, you're just getting started, my friends.

SH-288 both directions at Airline-Fort Bend to Hughes Ranch - Total Closure from 9 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday

Right through the heart of the Pearland area, this closure doesn't just include Broadway, that street at the freeway is also closed. Needless to say, nightmare scenario. And if you were planning a little trip down to Freeport for some fishing or maybe Surfside for a little winter beach time, pack a thermos because you might be on the road a while.

I-45 North Northbound at Rayford/Sawdust - Total Closure from 9 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday

As part of what appears to be a 1,000-year expansion to the freeway that connects Houston to Dallas, The Woodlands gets a heaping of road closure at one of the busiest intersections in the area. Fortunately, it's only for northbound travelers, so if you are headed to Dallas, maybe just don't do that. We're saving you anyway. Fortunately, there are no shows at the Pavilion this weekend, so no major reasons to go to The Woodlands either. Save yourselves.

I-45 South Northbound from 610 to Woodridge - Total Closure nightly from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. through January 31

Speaking of the hellish construction of 45, the nightly closure of northbound lanes from the 610 Loop to Woodridge south of Hobby Airport continues through January 31. Even when that is over, the work on the Gulf Freeway will continue for years, so steel yourself to the reality.