Transportation
BY HALEY MCLEOD
Authorities revive plans for South MoPac tolls The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority has revived a decade-old project intended to bring a solution to increasing traffic on south MoPac— more tolls. What you need to know After receiving the initial green light in 2013 to evaluate an 8-mile stretch of south MoPac from Cesar Chavez Street to Slaughter Lane, a lawsuit stalled progress from 2016 to 2021. In October, transportation officials have dialed in on plans for up to two new toll lanes in either direction. The agency is now evaluating the best configu- ration, considering several options: • One express lane with a downtown exit • One express lane without a downtown exit • Two express lanes with a downtown exit • Two express lanes without a downtown exit • Two express lanes with elevated ramps near Barton Skyway Alongside these options, the city has proposed an option for a single-lane elevated connector ramp in each direction to and from Cesar Chavez Street. There would be two express lanes in each direction between Cesar Chavez Street and Hwy. 290, and one express lane in each direction from Hwy. 290 down to Slaughter Lane. What they’re saying Gilpin said the agency is leaning toward two express lanes in either direction with elevated ramps near Barton Skyway. Bobby Levinski, a lawyer for the Save Our Springs Alliance, wrote a letter to the Mobility Authority on June 26 voicing
TxDOT breaks ground on I-35 construction The Texas Department of Transportation broke ground on its I-35 Capital Express Central project Oct. 30. The $4.5 billion infrastructure project will add two nontolled high-occupancy-vehicle lanes stretching roughly 8 miles from Hwy. 290 down to Hwy. 71. The other side The project has received criticism over the years, with concerns ranging from displace- ment to environmental concerns. Members from Rethink35, an advo- cacy group in opposition of the highway expansion, gathered to protest the project. Rethink35 filed a lawsuit earlier this year claiming TxDOT failed to conduct a proper air quality study. TxDOT’s Austin District engineer Tucker Ferguson said TxDOT completed an envi- ronmental impact study, which is held to federal environmental standards.
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concerns about the environmental impact of the plan on Barton Springs. “[Save Our Springs Alliance] will be mounting a campaign against the project and encouraging transportation policy makers to reconsider alter- natives,” Levinski wrote in an email to Community Impact on Oct. 30. Rollingwood Mayor Gavin Massingill reached out to the Mobility Authority this summer. He wrote in a letter July 12 his concern with the fact that the agency had not updated the project materials, schematics, cost estimates and traffic projections since originally developed in 2015. Mobility Authority Executive Director James Bass has since told Travis County commissioners that the agency has updated their plans with the 2045 traffic forecast data, which can be found on the project website. What’s next A virtual open house is available online through Dec. 29. Mobility Authority documents anticipate construction to begin in 2025.
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$32M federal grant advances Barton Springs Road Bridge replacement
for construction, according to previous reporting from Community Impact . The $32 million federal grant will support these construction costs. Plans for the bridge include replacing the exist- ing two-lane structure and its narrow sidewalks with a wider four-lane bridge featuring expanded cyclist and pedestrian pathways. Construction is anticipated to begin in 2025 and last three years. City staff said traffic will remain open across the bridge during construction.
Crews may soon begin work replacing the century-old Barton Springs Road Bridge after the city of Austin was awarded a $32 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation, according to a Nov. 4 news release. Some context The bridge was originally built in 1926 and last underwent an update nearly 80 years ago in 1946. The design stage utilizes $10 million from the 2020 Mobility Bond, while $37 million is needed
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LAKE TRAVIS - WESTLAKE EDITION
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