AUSTIN | Transportation Updates

[atxsnail]

Originally Posted by The ATX

Assholes:



We have State level conservatives and local Democrats fighting against rail. Almost seems hopeless.

What's different about how Austin is looking to build light rail compared to what Dallas and Houston have done?

Originally Posted by paul78701

Not much that I can see. It's just that the politics have changed.

Local dems are overwhelmingly in favor of light rail in Austin. There is a small, extremely vocal minority of local dems who have framed their entire political existence around opposition to change/development. Being against project connect is pretty consistent with their worldview. If I can editorialize for a moment, I think the world and time have passed them by and they are angrily lashing out at whatever they can, no matter the consequences.

I think I remember reading Houston funded the initial Red Line without a bond election. I think this was intentional after losing a few rail bond elections many years prior.

Dallas also had its own history of failed elections as well.

This state is so stupid sometimes.

[atxsnail]

Originally Posted by atxsnail

Local dems are overwhelmingly in favor of light rail in Austin. There is a small, extremely vocal minority of local dems who have framed their entire political existence around opposition to change/development. Being against project connect is pretty consistent with their worldview. If I can editorialize for a moment, I think the world and time have passed them by and they are angrily lashing out at whatever they can, no matter the consequences.

In related news, Jack Craver reports that Bill Bunch and other Austin olds are supporting Mackenzie Kelley in her re-election bid. NIMBYism falls across party lines, but I personally think it's much more spiritually aligned with conservatism. It's also sort of funny, because Kelley is not really a reliable NIMBY. Her votes on land use are somewhat hard to predict but she doesn't seem to be a development skeptic. It's more a reflection on the pro-housing stance of her challenger, apparently.

[Urbannizer]

Crosswalk signals finally coming to 4th&I-35

https://x.com/marshallgeyer/status/1...KAMHVCgfx518rg

[The ATX]

That's definitely a temporary improvement with the I-35 rebuild looming.

[gillynova]

That took forever lmao

[enragedcamel]

So literally every single person I've talked to over the past two or three months is insanely cynical about the I-35 expansion. It has made me wonder how the hell the project got approved in the first place. I admit I've not followed the drama at all.

Is there a place one can view the "current" status/roadmap/etc.? I'd like to better understand the milestones and whatnot.

[Echostatic]

I-35 Capital Express South is well under construction but still has quite a few years left to go with expected completion in 2028. I-35 Capital Express North is a little further behind but it's a much less significant project. Completion is also expected in 2028. Public construction information on these two projects is very limited.

The part people actually care about is I-35 Capital Express Central, which should be starting within a few months. The project website with phasing information is here: https://my35capex.com/projects/i-35-...xpress-central. Construction will be primarily focused south of the river until 2026. Final completion of this section is expected in 2032.

The most in-depth article that I've seen was published by KUT in February and goes over almost every detail of the Capital Express Central program. https://www.kut.org/transportation/2...central-austin

[Maximusx1]

Originally Posted by Echostatic

I-35 Capital Express South is well under construction but still has quite a few years left to go with expected completion in 2028. I-35 Capital Express North is a little further behind but it's a much less significant project. Completion is also expected in 2028. Public construction information on these two projects is very limited.

The part people actually care about is I-35 Capital Express Central, which should be starting within a few months. The project website with phasing information is here: https://my35capex.com/projects/i-35-...xpress-central. Construction will be primarily focused south of the river until 2026. Final completion of this section is expected in 2032.

The most in-depth article that I've seen was published by KUT in February and goes over almost every detail of the Capital Express Central program. https://www.kut.org/transportation/2...central-austin

Excellent post, thank you.

[gillynova]

Thank you echostatic for all that information!