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Most Popular Stories
- How Trump’s federal funding freeze is beginning to affect Austin
- APD won’t enforce SB 14 as Paxton and Trump further attack gender-affirming health care
- After shutting off mental health care for Austin musicians, SIMS Foundation restarts services
- Commercial EV station moves forward despite opposition
- Council approves call for better coordination, planning among downtown projects
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- Council Member Mike Siegel will speak out against cuts to federal services
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- Zero Waste Advisory Commission adds own ‘no’ rec on merge with RMC
- Former church site offers mix of affordable, permanent supportive housing in SE Austin
Transit
Transit, housing initiatives highlight accessibility concerns for disabled community
Advocates for disabled people in Austin want to ensure upcoming major changes to the local transportation network and housing market don’t exclude those with physical, visual or hearing impairments. A discussion on Tuesday at the Austin office of the advocacy…
Transit • By Chad Swiatecki • May 22, 2024
Lawsuit over bonds that would pay for Project Connect is taking a longer route
Although lawyers for the city of Austin and the Austin Transit Partnership were looking for a way to validate bonds needed to build Project Connect, the city’s proposed rail system, they have run into opposition from the Texas attorney general’s…
Courts • By Jo Clifton • May 16, 2024
Legal showdown threatens to end Austin's light-rail plans
Austin’s voter-backed transit expansion faced a critical legal test Wednesday inside a courtroom on Guadalupe Street. Seated in front of a marble wall and flanked by Texas and U.S. flags, Travis County Judge Eric Shepperd presided as attorneys in dark…
Courts • By Nathan Bernier, KUT • Apr 26, 2024
New Cap Metro train station opens at Q2 Stadium as ‘quiet zones’ take effect
Editors note: Since this story published, Capital Metro’s operations chief, Andy Skabowski, said he was mistaken about when quiet zones would take effect. In an interview with KUT, Skabowski apologized for his statements and clarified the quiet zone would start in six…
Transit • By Nathan Bernier, KUT • Feb 26, 2024
Dirty Martin's would be spared under new concept for light rail
A 98-year-old hamburger restaurant wouldn’t be flipped off the map to make space for Austin’s new light-rail system under conceptual plans revealed by the Austin Transit Partnership (ATP), the local government corporation building the 10-mile transit system. But the owner…
Transit • By Nathan Bernier, KUT • Feb 8, 2024
Council takes next step toward new density bonus plan along rail line
City Council last week approved a resolution designed to increase Austin’s chances of winning federal money to assist in building the first phase of Project Connect with an emphasis on development of housing for low- and middle-income residents along the…
Planning • By Jo Clifton • Feb 7, 2024
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Fresh details on Austin's light-rail plans emerge as officials chase federal cash
Lee esta historia en español Austinites curious about the city’s light-rail future are being offered fresh details as the Austin Transit Partnership (ATP) launches an in-depth environmental review in a bid to qualify for billions in federal cash. The new…
Transit • By Nathan Bernier, KUT • Feb 5, 2024
Cap Metro to increase security guard presence at transit centers, Republic Square
The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors’ operations, planning and safety committee at its Wednesday meeting heard an update on the system’s Public Safety Program. The program, approved by the board in 2021, is based on a three-prong approach…
Transit • By Nina Hernandez • Jan 19, 2024
Cap Metro conducts partial audit of methods for tracking and reporting greenhouse gas emissions
Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority is working toward a goal of reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. Last fall, Capital Metro partnered with University of Texas graduate students on an audit of its current methods for tracking and reporting…
Transit • By Nina Hernandez • Jan 18, 2024
Austin confronts legal challenge to 10-mile light-rail plan
City Council and the Austin Transit Partnership (ATP) are firing back against a lawsuit aiming to terminate the vision for a 10-mile light-rail network – the single most ambitious public transit project in the city’s history. In legal filings in…
Courts • By Nathan Bernier, KUT • Jan 10, 2024
Cap Metro finalizes free fare program for riders experiencing homelessness
The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors voted unanimously on Monday to approve a free two-year smart transit pass for eligible unhoused or housing-insecure customers. “This is a win-win overall,” Board Member Eric Stratton said during a related public…
Transit • By Emma Freer • Dec 22, 2023
Austin's shift to electric buses is plagued by vehicle glitches and supplier bankruptcy
Capital Metro’s drive to electrify its entire fleet of buses is coming with some hard lessons about the high costs of early adoption. The transit agency’s battery-powered buses have been less reliable and harder to fix. Now, a company selling…
