mobilitymayor & city council kick-off “year of mobility” with hundreds of transportation...

7/25/2019 MobilityMayor & City Council Kick-Off Year of Mobility with Hundreds of Transportation Improvements Citywide P

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For Immediate ReleaseRelease Date: January 28, 2016Contact: Jason Stanford (512) 978-2153Donna Tiemann, Council Member Ann Kitchen's Office (512) 978-2166

Mayor & City Council Kick-Off Year ofMobility with Hundreds of TransportationImprovements Citywide

Today the Mayor and City Council kicked off the Year of Mobility by announcing that the City and regional partners are

coordinating efforts to make progress on hundreds of t ransportation projects across the city that will ease congestion, make

traffic safer, and plan for the future. Announced today are a total of 109 projects not including regular street maintenance,

the mobility improvements paid for out of CapMetro funding to be approved today, and other regular projects such as filling

potholes, new striping on roads, and maintaining landscaping.

The City of Austin and our partners in the region are serious about making progress every day on the transportationchallenges we all face. Over the next year, you will see progress that moves us closer to our goal of a safe and effective

transportation system, where people have choices about how they get around the city, said Ann Kitchen, Chair of the

Council Mobility Committee.

Weve got so many shovel-ready projects lined up that were going to run out of shovels. Were going to cut so many

ribbons that were going to need to find a place to sharpen our giant pair of scissors. Its getting harder for people to get to

work, so people expect us to get to work, and thats what were doing, said Mayor Steve Adler.

The below list includes but is not limited to this sample of major milestone in Mobility and Congestion Management , Safety,

Innovation, that will be reached in 2016:

Mobility and Congestion Management:

Continuation of the Traffic Congestion Action Plan to retime signals to reduce congestion and travel times,

repair vehicle detection systems at intersections to reduce wait times for signal changes, limit construction

closures, better manage special events, and continue the Dont Block the Box campaign.

9 street reconstruction projects

Expand the 20/20 Mobility Challenge to major employers to reduce single occupancy vehicle trips during rush

hour by twenty percent (or more) by 2020. Some of our biggest downtown employers have already committed

to the challenge, and the City of Austin has already met the 20% goal for its own employees.

Invest in transportation technology via our Advanced Transportation Management System to better use data to

improve travel times.

Improvements to major intersections, streets, and bicycle and transit infrastructure, including:

Improvements to E 51st from Berkman Drive to US Hwy 183

Extension of Parmer Lane from US Hwy 290 E to SH 130 Toll Road

Open a dedicated bicycle facility on the MoPac mobility bridges

Improve mobility and parking on Rainey Street from Driskill St. to River St.

Corridor improvements to Riverside Drive, including intersection improvements at S Lakeshore Blvd


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Improvements to Todd Lane from Ben White Blvd to St. Elmo Rd to accommodate traffic and improve

pedestrian and bicycling access

Improvements to E 7th St. & N. Pleasant Valley Road intersection

Completion of the Upper Boggy Creek Trail to connect the MLK MetroRail Station to E 12th Street and

surrounding neighborhoods

Expansion of the Howard and Lakeline park & rides to accommodate the growth in drivers who are choosing to

use MetroRail and MetroExpress buses to commute

Study potential signal improvements at Parmer Lane from SH 45 to Whitestone Blvd

Regional transportation agencies will continue to collaborate on a variety of major improvements on our most

congested corridors, including: North and South MoPac, SH71, 183, the Y at Oak Hill, and more.

Safety:

Adopt and begin implementation of the Vision Zero Action Plan.

Complete design and begin construction on improvements at five of Austins most-dangerous intersections.

6 Local Area Traffic Management Projects (which are requested by citizens)

11 Road/Intersection Improvements projects, including the 5 Intersection Sa fety Improvement Projects funded

by Council in Oct 2015

3 Signal Projects, including a PHB on N Lamar Blvd, north of Parmer Ln; new signal at S Lamar Blvd and

Toomey Rd, and the Parmer Ln Signals Study with the City of Cedar Park

Start construction on IH-35 and 51st Street total mobility and safety improvements to include upgrading signals,

improved travel time, and enhanced safety for bicyclists and pedestrians.

Additional investment in Pedestrian Hybrid Beacons and other infrastructure improvements at key locations

thought the city to improve safety pedestrians.

Make intersection safety improvements to I-35 Service Road Southbound and E MLK Drive; N Lamar Blvd and

Rundberg Lane; N Parmer Lane and N Lamar Blvd; US Hwy 183 and Cameron Road; W Slaughter Lane and

Manchaca Road

Install new signals to enhance safety at S Lamar Blvd and Toomey Road

Innovative Projects:

With our government and private sector partners, Austin will apply for the US DOTs Smart City Challenge,

which seeks new ways to use technology to improve travel for everyone.

Continue our partnership with the Rocky Mountain Institute, which recently chose Austin, Texas from among

cities nationally to be the lead city in an effort to leverage emerging technology and business innovation. The

effort enhances mobility options, in turn reducing congestion, decreasing costs, improving the environment, andmore. Denver, Colorado is also a partner in the effort working to test scalability of different projects.

Planning for the future:


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In 2016, Austinites will help shape a new transportation vision for our city. An updated Austin Strategic Mobility

Plan will harness community input and guide transportation improvements moving forward. The ASMP will

include an updated transportation vision, goals, objectives and action items. Combined with our Imagine Austin

Comprehensive Plan, the ASMP will connect land use and transportation to create a more integrated and

comprehensive plan for the future for our City.

Continue to work with TxDOT on planning efforts to improve traffic flow on Loop 360, RM 620 and Parmer

Lane.

The City Council, through its membership on the Capital Metro Board of Directors, and the Austin

Transportation Department, will collaborate with Capital Metro as they conduct an in-depth review of the transit

system through Connections 2025. The review will ensure that Austin residents best interests regarding transit

and mobility are considered.

We will also partner with Capital Metro on their Central Corridor Study an in depth study of potential high-

capacity transit solutions for Austin.

Neighborhood Connections:

5 Neighborhood Partnering Program Projects that include 2 cycle tracks (on Hancock Dr and Arroyo Seco), EM

Franklin Green Street Project, and 2 urban trail improvements (Davis Lane Trail Segment & Lighting the Shoal

Creek Trail)

Construction of new sidewalks and bicycle connections in every part of the City.

6 urban trail projects: Upper Boggy Creek Ph 1; MoPac Bicycle Bridge over Barton Creek; Country Club Creek

Trail Ph 1; Violet Crown TrailNorth; Violet Crown TrailSouth; and Northern Walnut Creek Hike and Bike

Trail Phase 1

44 Sidewalk/Pedestrian Projects, including 2 named projects Sabine St Promenade and Landside Roadway

and Pedestrian Improvements (located at ABIA, includes a new pedestrian pathway and improved traffic flow atspecific intersections)

25 locations for curb ramp improvements, throughout the City

In addition, the Council is expected to approve $21.8 million in additional mobility improvements in every

Council district (1/4 cent funds), including neighborhood traffic calming, intersection improvements, sidewalks,

and safety improvements.

The Mayor and Council Members stressed that even with all of the progress that will be made in 2016, there is

a need to start a discussion with the public about funding for future transportation projects. The entire City

Council has been invited to the next Mobility Committee meeting, Feb. 3, to kick off a community discussion

about how Austin can fund the next big transportation initiative and which project(s) can be included.

Great cities do big things, and there is nothing bigger facing Austin right now than our mobility crisis. Its no

secret that I-35 is the most congested road in Texas, said Mayor Steve Adler. We need to have a serious

conversation in this community about how we move from the drafting board to fixing I-35 and investing in

transportation projects on other major corridors such as Lamar, Burnet Road and East MLK that we need to

tackle in the near future.

We have asked our community for years to provide input and feedback on numerous transportation projects to develop

plans for future deployment. Now, it is time we do something. I want to see the City implement the plans that our

community has spent so much time and effort developing, said City Council Member Ann Kitchen.


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