Urban Rail Planning Update, February 2011

Posted on February 14, 2011

As part of the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan, the City of Austin is studying alternatives for a transit investment to serve key destinations in Central Austin and provide direct connections to other regional transit systems and the overall Central Texas mobility network. Work continues on project development efforts to provide the City Council and community with the information it needs -- about routes, technologies and costs -- to make an investment decision.

Products of these efforts, looking at route and technology alternatives, conceptual engineering, and environmental issues, can be found here at AustinSMP.com. The city is also conducting financial and economic analyses; working with partner agencies on coordinated planning and operations issues; and working with the Federal Transit Administration to explore Austin's options for federal funding and investment. This work is being performed both by City of Austin staff and outside experts. To date, the city has spent approximately $1.7 million on Urban Rail project development contracts -- approximately .1% of the estimated cost of the proposed urban rail system.   

More public involvement opportunities on the proposed urban rail project will be announced soon. 

Urban Rail Expenses as of 2-9-11 (.PDF)