Project Connect

Project Connect to appear on Austin's November ballot

Austinites get to weigh in on Project Connect.

Rendering for conceptual purposes only and courtesy of CapMetro

This November, the Initial Investment for Project Connect will be on the ballot, giving Austin residents the opportunity to weigh in on Capital Metro's plan for the future of Austin's transit system.

At a joint session held August 7, the Austin City Council advanced the Initial Investment of Project Connect to November's election. The $7.1 billion investment is intended as the next step toward implementing the Project Connect System Plan.

A quick snapshot of Project Connect's Initial Investment:

A new rail system connecting Austin's neighborhoods in the north, south, and east with new stops and stations including The Domain, UT, Austin FC stadium, the airport, Colony Park, and the South Congress district. That's 27 miles and 31 stations, including a downtown tunnel that would separate rail from traffic designed to improve on-time performance.

Routes would include:

Orange Line: Light Rail connecting north and south Austin, beginning at North Lamar and U.S. 183 and extending to Stassney Lane.
Blue Line: Light Rail offering new service to the airport, beginning at North Lamar and U.S. 183, through downtown and directly to the airport.
Green Line: New commuter rail service connecting downtown to East Austin's Colony Park.
Red Line: Expanded commuter rail service with new stations serving The Domain and Austin FC's soccer stadium at McKalla Place.

High-frequency MetroRapid bus service with priority treatments and three new routes covering nearly 36 miles and 65 stations.

The Gold Line would begin as a MetroRapid bus service with an additional 10 new stations and could be converted to Light Rail as part of the System Plan.
Three new MetroExpress commuter routes, nine new Park & Rides, one new transit center, and all-electric MetroBike rental options at transit centers.
15 new neighborhood Circulator Zones with on-demand pick-up.

The $7.1 billion Initial Investment also includes $300 million for anti-displacement efforts, including transit-oriented developments and affordable housing along Project Connect routes.

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Project Connect is a transit plan designed for the entire Austin region.

transportation promoted traffic

Take A Bike

City of Austin gears up to make permanent changes to Congress Avenue

City of Austin gears up to make permanent changes to Congress Avenue

Photo courtesy of AustinTexas.gov

Congress Avenue's undergoing a transformation.

Driving down Congress Avenue has looked a lot different this summer. Not only are the throngs of traffic gone and buildings empty of workers, but a series of temporary bike lanes have been installed along the corridor.

In May, more than a 1,000 residents signed a petition asking to install the bike lanes along "the Main Street of Texas." The following month, the Austin City Council passed the measure and announced the creation of temporary bike lanes along Congress, between Riverside Drive and 11th Street.

With Austin battling COVID-19, the bike lanes were a way "to improve safety and to address COVID-19 risk-based guidelines to ensure enough physical distance for all people using [Congress] Avenue and the Ann Richards Bridge," the city said at the time.

Earlier this week, the City of Austin announced the bike lanes will become permanent. The traffic cones and plastic markers installed to designate the lanes will be replaced with flexible delineator posts and parking stops to create a physical barrier between cyclists and vehicles. Driveways and on-street parking will remain accessible to cars, notes a news release.

Congress Avenue's new bike lanes promote access to alternative modes of transportation while easing traffic on downtown sidewalks. With cyclists and scooter riders using dedicate lanes, pedestrians and nearby businesses are better able to take advantage of the sidewalk and maintain social distancing guidelines, the city notes in its announcement.

Along with the bike lanes, the city also announced the creation of dedicated left and right turn signals at high-traffic intersections, a move that will hopefully stop the soul-crushing feeling of cruising down Congress only to get stopped behind someone attempting to make a left-hand turn across three lanes of traffic. In addition, improved pedestrian crossings and signage will also be installed.

These improvements are part of the Congress Avenue Urban Design Initiative, a project funded in 2012 and launched in 2017 with the goal of improving the downtown corridor.

Construction on the permanent bike lanes is already underway, and the city has projected a four-to-six week timeline for completion.

downtown transportation

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