SOS loses bid for MoPac injunction

On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel declined to issue a preliminary injunction that would have prevented the beginning of construction on State Highway 45 Southwest.

The judge ruled that the Save Our Springs Alliance and other plaintiffs in the lawsuit had failed to prove their case. He ruled that the toll road – which will connect the south end of the MoPac Expressway with FM 1626 – is not a “major federal action and is therefore not subject to the (National Environmental Policy Act’s) environmental impact statement requirement. Plaintiffs have failed to establish a substantial likelihood of success on the merits.”

The road will cross the Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer recharge zone and includes woodland habitat for the endangered golden-cheeked warbler. The SOS Alliance – along with the Save Barton Creek Association and former Austin mayors Carole Keeton and Frank Cooksey – are concerned that when the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority and its partner, the Texas Department of Transportation, begin clearing the proposed right-of-way, their actions will harm the warbler, the endangered Barton Springs salamander and the Austin blind salamander.

The highway agencies insist that the road will not harm those species. A press release from CTRMA Executive Director Mike Heiligenstein stated, “The SH 45SW environmental study followed state and federal regulations as required, and we have created a plan that exceeds all required environmental elements as a reflection of our community values.”

The SOS Alliance released a statement that said, “While this is a significant setback, the case, and parallel efforts to keep MoPac from being converted into a second Interstate 35 through Austin and on top of Texas’ most vulnerable aquifer will continue. Plaintiffs will pursue this case to conclusion.”

The CTRMA plans to begin construction of the 3.6-mile toll road in November. Construction is expected to take three years to complete. The mobility authority noted that it awarded construction of the $78 million project to McCarthy Building Companies Inc. and that Hays and Travis counties have contributed $20 million toward the project. CTRMA and TxDOT plan to fund the remaining costs with toll revenue.

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Photo by Isaac Sanchez made available through a Creative Commons license.

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