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Transit

Council passes transparency changes to transit partnership board

Last week, City Council voted to recommend changes to the Austin Transit Partnership Board of Directors that would add two additional seats to the five-member board and establish transparency standards for their appointments. The resolution directs the city manager to…

Light-rail tunnel under downtown Austin might not happen after all

Some or all of Austin’s light-rail system could be at street level downtown instead of underground, which was the vision sold to voters when they authorized Project Connect in November 2020. The Austin Transit Partnership, a local government corporation created to build the Orange and Blue…

Broken buses slow Capital Metro schedules

Capital Metro bus commuters, already coping with reduced schedules put in place last year, are this week facing further frustrations as they try to catch a bus. The regional transit agency says a shortage of bus parts is keeping a…

City aims to get out of its own way with 'fast-track' permitting for Project Connect rail lines

An ordinance aimed at streamlining permitting for Project Connect has been making its way through boards and commissions in recent weeks – the latest sign of progress toward new rail and bus lines approved by voters in 2020.  On Tuesday,…

Cap Metro previews impact of Manor and Lago Vista leaving service area

The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors learned more this week about the potential fallout of both Lago Vista and Manor ending their partnerships and leaving the Capital Metro service area. In August, both suburbs decided to hold elections…

Two more Texas towns are considering leaving Capital Metro

Two more Austin suburbs – Lago Vista and Manor – have decided to hold an election this November to determine whether to pull out of their partnerships with the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority. These elections follow Leander’s vote in May,…

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Real estate, transit leaders see potential for change in Project Connect plans

As planning and early design work on the Project Connect mass transit plan moves forward, with cost increases mounting due to inflation and scope expansion, a Dallas developer told Austin real estate leaders recently that the city has an opportunity…

Advocates continue the fight for free transportation for Austin's unhoused

The start of Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s monthly board of directors meeting yesterday had a different feel than usual. Typically, a few speakers may approach the podium to speak in support of or against an item on the agenda. Yesterday, however, advocates and…

Cap Metro struggles to recruit and retain more bus operators

Late last year, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority raised the starting hourly wage for bus drivers to $22/hour and kicked in a $5,000 signing bonus for qualified candidates with a commercial driver’s license. But despite these perks, the transit organization is…

Cap Metro expands free rides to cooling centers. Advocates for homeless Austinites push for more.

Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority said Tuesday it will give free rides to cooling centers on days when a heat advisory is in effect – that is usually when the temperature hits 103 degrees or higher. Previously, the transit agency offered…

Advocates call for free Cap Metro fares for Austin's unhoused

On Monday, the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors unanimously approved the implementation of a new system that caps the amount riders pay for fares. Another part of the system provides reduced fares for people with lower incomes, called Equifare. But before…

Capital Metro hosts groundbreaking ceremony for its new station outside of Austin FC stadium

On Monday evening, following a compelling rendition by the Austin FC marching band of Camila Cabello’s “Havana” (singing “McKalla, ah la-la” instead of “Havana, ooh na-na”) state and local officials and Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority staff participated in a groundbreaking…

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