The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is asking the federal government to let the state continue to approve its own environmental reviews – a delegated authority intended to fast-track highway projects. The public has until Monday night to weigh in on the arrangement that critics have long skewered as “the fox guarding the hen house.” Since 2014, TxDOT […]
TxDOT
The transportation agency for the State of Texas.
Posted inRoads
I-35 caps plan reconsidered as cost estimates soar by 61%
Austin’s transformational plan to cover parts of Interstate 35 with parks and public spaces, intended to bridge the divide between east and west neighborhoods, is facing a financial reckoning as estimated costs soar and city staff warn the project could drain cash from other priorities. Refined plans show the estimated price tag of the full 26-acre […]
Posted inTransportation
Thousands of Austin’s bats will be displaced by I-35 expansion
The expansion of Interstate 35 through Austin is set to displace more than 100 homes and businesses. But an even larger community is being forced to relocate: thousands of bats that roost in the highway’s bridges. While the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has taken steps to protect bats, some conservationists argue more could be done […]
Posted inRoads
TxDOT argues in court that I-35 never caused racial discrimination – contradicting TxDOT
The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is arguing in federal court that Interstate 35 didn’t unfairly disadvantage Black or Latino Austinites, contradicting the state agency’s own historical assessments of the highway that opened in 1962. “Defendant specifically denies the allegations that the construction of I-35 caused discrimination against Black or Latino communities or that I-35 […]
Posted inRoads
Funding freeze for I-35 expansion denied in heated CAMPO vote
An attempt to freeze funding for the Interstate 35 expansion through Central Austin until the project’s impact on air quality can be more fully assessed was easily defeated Monday in a vote by the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization’s planning board. The 22-member panel allocates billions in federal transportation cash throughout the Austin area. The […]
Posted inRoads
UT pledges $13.5 million to cover I-35 from Dean Keeton to 15th Street
The University of Texas is making a $13.5 million down payment to cover Interstate 35 from 15th Street to Dean Keeton, a feat that will be made possible by a state project to widen and lower the highway through Central Austin. UT System Regents voted Thursday to approve a funding agreement with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). […]
Posted inRoads
Summit panel looks at possibilities and challenges of I-35 cap-and-stitch program
While intense construction on the lowering and widening of Interstate 35 isn’t scheduled to begin until mid- or late 2026, local business and political leaders want the public to know that decisions and talks taking place now will have a dramatic effect on how the project reshapes Austin’s future. Transportation and commerce experts discussed the […]
Posted inRoads
City seeking $191M state loan to cover costs of caps and stitch for I-35
The city will turn to a state loan program as a major source of the funding for the more than $500 million cost of constructing caps and a stitch over Interstate 35 after it is buried and expanded over the course of the next decade. At today’s meeting, City Council is expected to approve an […]
Posted inRoads
Federal grant provides $105M for Chavez-Fourth Street cap over rebuilt I-35
The city received a boost in its plan to construct broad, plaza-like caps over sunken portions of Interstate 35, with the announcement of a $105 million federal grant to fund a portion of the construction. On Monday, the U.S. Department of Transportation named Austin as a recipient of a Capital Construction Grant that is part […]
Posted inRoads
Your ultimate guide to the I-35 expansion through Central Austin
Austin’s Interstate 35 – the spine of the region’s roadway grid – is about to undergo the largest expansion since the highway opened in 1962. Brace yourself: Construction could last a decade. This time it’s for real. The money – at least $4.5 billion – has been set aside. The Texas Department of Transportation is […]
Posted inPreservation
Landmark commissioners seek recourse for TxDOT’s threat to Edward Rendon Sr. Park
As Austinites brace themselves for nearly a decade of construction on Interstate 35, the Historic Landmark Commission is joining forces with activists resisting demolition of a historic pecan grove in East Austin’s Edward Rendon Sr. Park at Festival Beach. The pecan grove, which dates back to 1964, sits within the 1.2 acres of Waller Beach […]
Posted inRoads
I-35 expansion sparks civil rights complaint and another lawsuit
Opponents of the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) plans to widen Interstate 35 from Ben White Boulevard to U.S. 290 East are taking their fight to federal court. The legal complaint echoes calls heard at rallies and from local elected officials against one of the largest road projects in Austin’s history. The group of 16 plaintiffs — […]