Transportation Officials Seek Public Input On South Austin Roadway Improvements

SOUTH AUSTIN, TX -- Texas Department of Transportation officials are seeking public input from residents on a proposed mobility improvements project.

The focused site is at Interstate 35 at Riverside Drive, from south of Holly Street to north of Oltorf Drive. Officials staged a meeting for residents at Travis High School on Sept. 29, but are still accepting input from residents online.

Officials seek public comment the proposed improvements—particularly the impacts to the Norwood Tract—and to satisfy Chapter 26 of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Code, which requires a public hearing if land from a publicly owned park is proposed to be purchased by the state, officials noted.

The estimated $159 million project is designed to improve safety and mobility for all users of I-35 while minimizing right-of-way, community and environmental impacts. The project proposes to reconstruct the main lanes and frontage roads from south of Holly Street to north of Oltorf Street, add an intersection bypass lane under Riverside Drive, and improve the intersections at Riverside Drive and Woodland Avenue. Throughout the project limits, a shared use path would extend along I-35, officials said.

Public input will be accepted through Oct. 13 at www.mobility35openhouse.com.

>>> Image Shutterstock, map courtesy of Texas Department of Transportation