Members of the Urban Forestry Board are highly critical of the methods used in a report by USA Cycling that claims the city, not the cycling organization, caused most of the damage done to 57 trees in Zilker Park during a Cyclocross event in January. USA Cycling said in January it had budgeted funds to […]
Transportation
Posted inAustin, Hays County, Roads, Transportation, Travis County
US Fish and Wildlife concerned about SH 45 SW
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service sent letters to Mayor Steve Adler, Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt and others Wednesday, expressing concerns about the potential environmental impacts of the proposed State Highway 45 Southwest on the Balcones Canyonlands Conservation Plan, or BCCP. Eckhardt has called for a hold on current plans for the highway. In […]
Posted inRoads, Transportation
MoPac South may only work with raised ramp
Whether it includes two or four express lanes, a proposed MoPac South expansion project would likely require the elevated ramp over Lady Bird Lake that has caused a stir in recent weeks. That is what Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority Executive Director Mike Heiligenstein said at Monday’s meeting of the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization […]
Posted inDevelopment, Transportation
Committee takes on dog hotels, airport planning
Last week, the City Council Planning Committee took a look at pet motels and whether they belong in the Airport Overlay. As a body, the committee has opted to avoid specific zoning recommendations, so it took a big-picture look at two proposals for pet hotels that will soon be before the full Council. The Planning […]
Posted inPublic Safety, Roads
Safety chair questions commitment to Vision Zero
A city planner Monday gave the Public Safety Commission an update on the Vision Zero Task Force work toward devising a traffic safety plan for the city. The task force’s name reflects the blueprint it’s tasked with drafting: a Vision Zero plan aimed at reducing the number of traffic deaths to zero. However, at least one […]
Posted inCity Council, Transit, Transportation
Mobility Committee maneuvers on taxicab contracts
While the city has begun a process to rewrite regulations for both taxicabs and transportation network companies such as Uber and Lyft, a looming expiration of the city’s taxicab franchise agreements and a bill in the Texas Legislature appear to be complicating the matter. In an effort to address the issue, the City Council Mobility […]
Posted inRoads, Transportation
City says SH45 SW environmental study unsound
Austin’s Environmental Board is looking at its options after hearing from city staff that the approved environmental impact study, or EIS, for State Highway 45 Southwest is not based on sound science. The EIS was prepared by TxDOT and CTRMA, with assistance from consultants. Chuck Lesniak, environmental officer with the City of Austin, presented the news […]
Posted inTransit
Mobility Committee considers taxicab regulations
While taxicabs have served Austin for decades, the entrance of Uber and Lyft into the picture has prompted a ground-up re-evaluation of how the city regulates the seasoned industry. The City Council Mobility Committee considered a set of amendments to the city’s taxicab ordinance Wednesday that, among other changes, would increase the number of available […]
Posted inRoads, Transportation, Travis County
Travis Commissioners split over CAMPO 2040 Plan
Discontent over a landmark transportation plan drove Travis County Commissioners to draw distinct battle lines Tuesday between two competing visions. The hour-long discussion on the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization’s developing 2040 Regional Transportation Plan featured a rare crack in the court’s usual comity. In the end, the court voted 3-1-1 to ask CAMPO to […]
Posted inTransportation
Hundreds gather to sound off on MoPac plan
On Tuesday, several hundred Austinites crowded the cafeteria of Austin High School in order to weigh in on plans for MoPac Boulevard. The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority has proposed a $352.8 million project that would add four tolled express lanes to MoPac Boulevard from Cesar Chavez Street to Slaughter Lane and two raised lanes […]
Posted inLocal Government, Roads, Transportation
CTRMA stalls proposal to double-deck MoPac
A plan that could transform MoPac Boulevard now appears to be trudging rather than speeding along, though it still may reach its destination in due time. The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority announced Monday that it is delaying its proposal to add four tolled express lanes to a stretch of MoPac between Cesar Chavez Street […]
Posted inTransportation
City-led Traffic Congestion Action Plan on the way
The Austin Monitor has obtained a memo from City Manager Marc Ott that briefly details plans for Austin’s new Traffic Congestion Action Plan, or “Traffic CAP,” though officials delayed a planned news conference on the topic until today due to a partial bridge collapse near Salado. In the memo, Ott writes, “The plan’s goal is […]