Transportation
BY KATY MCAFEE
Buda and Hays County leaders unveiled the pre- liminary routes for the SH 45 completion project at the city’s second open house Dec. 7. The project, dubbed the SH 45 “gap” project, would fill a nearly 4-mile gap of SH 45 between I-35 and RM 1626 near the Travis and Hays county line. The favored route selected by project managers will cause no residential or commercial displace- ments and has a shorter flood plain crossing over Onion and Garlic creeks, according to the project plans. Buda and Hays County leaders unveiled the pre- liminary routes for the SH 45 completion project at the city’s second open house Dec. 7. The backstory SH 45 was originally pitched in the ‘80s as the “Outer Austin Parkway” that circled Austin; however, the full project was never realized due to financial constraints and environmental concerns, said Stacey Benningfield, the SH 45 project man- ager and longtime transportation professional. “What has happened over time is that bits and pieces have been constructed,” Benningfield said. “This is the remaining gap. And it’s just now rising to the point of being studied.” The context The SH 45 gap project has raised alarm bells from locals and Travis County leaders since a feasibility study was approved in August 2022. Opponents of the project cited it would harm the Edwards Aquifer and reroute an influx of truck traffic on MoPac. SH 45 gap project routes identified
The recommended route The SH 45 gap project will cause no commercial or residential displacements and have a shorter floodplain compared to other routes. If the project advances, engineers will conduct a 3-5 year environmental study.
Manchaca
recommended preliminary route
45
Onion Creek
35
environmental study area
1626
45
967
Buda
MAP NOT TO SCALE N
SOURCES: CITY OF BUDA, HAYS COUNTY/COMMUNITY IMPACT
Benningfield said a portion of the roadway would be built over the aquifer’s transition zone, a less-sensitive area compared to the recharge zone where the western portion of SH 45 is already built. Benningfield and her team are still researching how to build the roadway in the most “environ- mentally sensitive” way possible. If the project advances to the next planning stage, it will undergo 3-5 years of environmental studies and investigations. What’s next In the coming months, Benningfield and her team will undergo a traffic impact analysis to
understand how filling the gap will impact traffic on MoPac and other local roadways. The study will be completed in late spring or early summer 2024 and be presented to the public at a third open house. “The study that we're doing is looking at the feasibility [and trying] to assess whether the project actually has wings, so to speak, and whether there's an interest in momentum in order to advance this.” STACEY BENNINGFIELD, SH 45 PROJECT MANAGER
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