Capital Metro board authorizes contract for long-awaited pedestrian crossing at I-35 and Fourth Street

The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors this week paved the way for construction of a pedestrian crossing at Interstate 35 and Fourth Street.

The resolution, which passed on the consent agenda at the board’s Aug. 28 meeting, authorizes the agency to execute a contract with Rio Grande Pacific Technology Inc. for $358,038. Funding for this item is included in the Fiscal Year 2023-24 Capital Budget.

The contract includes a 20 percent contingency not to exceed $429,646.

Currently, pedestrians and cyclists – including MetroRail passengers accessing the Downtown Station – are forced to cross the frontage road at I-35 and Fourth Street unprotected. The pedestrian crossing will provide traffic signal preemption and a protected crosswalk at both the northbound and southbound frontage roads.

The traffic signals will be installed parallel to the railroad grade crossing at the intersection. According to the meeting’s agenda backup, “small portions of the conduit infrastructure have already been installed under recent Downtown Station construction.” Capital Metro will ensure the new signals are properly coordinated and integrated with its railroad signal system.

“(Capital Metro) will provide and install railroad signal infrastructure and cabling to integrate the necessary changes within the adjacent railroad signal bungalows and RailComm software to insure signal pre-emption,” the document reads.

Mayor Pro Tem Paige Ellis is a member of the Capital Metro board. In a statement to the Austin Monitor, she praised the closing of a “dangerous gap” in east-west connectivity across I-35.

“Pedestrians and cyclists have had to guess if they have time to safely get across this intersection as they navigate coming in and out of downtown Austin. If we want more people to try different mobility options, it is our responsibility to ensure they can do so safely,” she said.

Red Line Parkway Initiative is the nonprofit working to support the planned 32-mile trail to follow Capital Metro’s Red Line from downtown to Leander. Tom Wald, executive director of the group, agreed.

“We are very thankful that these walk and bike signals for the Red Line Parkway at I-35 and 4th Street are finally going to be installed,” he told the Monitor. “Right now, people have to find a gap in highway speed traffic to cross both frontage roads, and most drivers aren’t prepared to stop.”

He continued, “This project is an example of coordination across multiple government agencies, and overcoming the immense challenges of creating a new walking and biking trail through an already built-up city.”

As the Texas Department of Transportation prepares to commence construction on its I-35 Capital Express expansion of the interstate next year, city officials have been working to maximize cap-and-stitch efforts that include enhanced pedestrian access, among other community amenities. The latest version of the project featured several revisions to that end, including a $25 million boardwalk across Lady Bird Lake.

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