Downtown Austin change: new rail station, more two-way traffic
In two votes Thursday, City Council approved funding to help the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority build a new downtown rail station and public plaza to serve the Red Line and gave the OK to turn East Fifth Street into a two-way street to help ease the congestion that the new development is expected to exacerbate.
Transportation Director Robert Spillar explained that $500,000 will add the westbound lane to Fifth Street. That new lane is aimed at reducing congestion that results from the frequent closures of parts of East Sixth Street during the weekends and special events.
The new lane will also coincide with the construction of a new rail station and public plaza on Fourth Street, between Red River and Trinity streets. The plan will also prohibit cars on that section of Fourth Street.
Council Member Ora Houston suggested that the solution to the issues Spillar described might be “flexible routes,” whereby the direction of streets switches based on schedule. Spillar replied that in the past Council had instructed the Transportation Department to avoid “reversible streets” and that they often lead to confusion.
Read more: https://www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2017/05/downtown-change-new-rail-station-two-way-traffic/