For use on Expressway News

Capital Metro and the City of Austin teamed up on March 4th to host Traffic Jam! - A “hands-on” public input workshop with the community and agency partners. Held at the Bullock Texas State History Museum and attended by approximately 230 people, the workshop featured interactive participant stations along with multiple panel discussions with area leaders to primarily educate and engage the community on Project Connect and the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan (ASMP). The focus was on working together to create solutions to mobility challenges facing the city and surrounding communities.

Connecting You to the Places You Live, Work, Learn and Play through Transit

Capital Metro is re-engaging on a regional, high-capacity transit plan called Project Connect which was first introduced to the region in 2013. This renewed effort is needed due to explosive population growth, affordability and connectivity issues, and the need for multi-modal transportation options. It combines the expertise of national transit professionals, new and previous input from Central Texans and work from prior studies. Project Connect takes all of this information, new and old, into account to decide together with the people of the Austin region which projects will move us all forward toward new travel options. Options that will move more people faster, provide direct routes with improved connections, reduce wait times and provide real, workable solutions for the citizens of Central Texas. Click here for more information on Project Connect.

Imagining Solutions for Austin’s Mobility Challenges

Imagine having more mobility choices to get you to and from your destination quickly and safely so that you can spend more time doing what you love instead of sitting in traffic congestion. With Austin being ranked #1 Best Place to live in the US in 2017 by U.S. News and World Report, the word is out that our city is a wonderful place to live, work and raise a family. This attraction to Austin potentially brings more drivers to a transportation network that is already at or nearing capacity.

The city of Austin’s current transportation plan was adopted in 1995 and needs to be updated to reflect the vision established in Imagine Austin, the city’s overarching comprehensive plan adopted in 2012. The 1995 transportation plan, The Austin Metropolitan Area Transportation Plan, will be replaced by a new updated plan, the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan. ASMP is a community-driven effort to create true choices among Austin’s mobility options, including multi-modal connectivity.

One goal of this Traffic Jam! workshop, the kick-off event in a series of community work sessions, was to gather public input on eight ASMP areas of consideration: affordability, commuter delay, economic prosperity, health and safety, innovation, placemaking, sustainability and travel choice. The city is experiencing unprecedented growth, and the ASMP focus is on finding solutions to help the city absorb new growth in a balanced way that aligns with community values. Key takeaways from community input at Traffic Jam! are that Affordability ranked as the top “Mobility Consideration” followed by Travel Choice, and Health and Safety whereas Economic Prosperity ranked the lowest out of the eight areas of consideration. The ASMP planning process launched in Fall 2016, continues through 2017, and will provide opportunities for public engagement throughout the year. The city’s goal is to adopt a plan in 2018 after all of the data collected throughout the planning process has been analyzed and taken into consideration. Click here for more information on ASMP.

Talking About Sticky Transportation Issues

Moderator Terry Mitchell, Capital Metro board member, initiated the first panel discussion of the Traffic Jam! on mobility challenges and opportunities with area leaders including Mayor Steve Adler, State Senator Kirk Watson (D-Austin), and State Representative Celia Israel (D-Austin). Although the City of Austin and Capital Metro are working on separate mobility and transit plans, panel discussions stressed the importance of working together on regional transportation planning in order to deliver effective, yet feasible solutions to current and future mobility and transit needs in our region that affect affordability, connectivity, job growth and prosperity.

Nikelle Meade, Vice-Chair of the Mobility Authority Board of Directors, moderated the afternoon discussion panel on the topic of implementing area transportation plans. She was joined on the panel by Mobility Authority Director of External Affairs, Dee Anne Heath, along with Linda Watson, Capital Metro President/CEO, and Rob Spillar, P.E., City of Austin Transportation Director. The panel talked briefly about transportation projects that are currently underway and how agencies are working together to create a mobility plan that works for everyone by providing choices for all transportation users.

“Continued collaboration with all of the transportation players is critical to this region,” says Heath.

Heath cited the MoPac Express Lane project as an innovative transportation solution example. The project has special barrier-separated lanes that are designed to remain congestion free through the utilization of variable tolls to manage the amount of traffic in the lane - when traffic is heavy tolls increase; when traffic is light tolls are lower. When fully constructed, the MoPac Express lane project will provide public transit buses, registered van pools, and emergency vehicles with a reliable, uncongested, non-stop, toll free route to their destination, which should promote greater use of public transit.

A Collaborative Approach to Mobility

The Mobility Authority is committed to working with partner agencies to address common challenges. Thank you to our partners, Capital Metro and the City of Austin, for the opportunity have a conversation with you and the public at the Traffic Jam! about transportation in our region. We look forward to future opportunities to engage the communities we serve and continue down the road to achieving greater mobility for Central Texans.

Getting through Austin’s Traffic Jams Together

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