The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority has set a groundbreaking ceremony for Oct. 18 on its MoPac Improvement Project that will add one express lane in each direction from Parmer Lane to Lady Bird Lake.

Heather Reavey, vice president of HNTB, which the Mobility Authority contracted as the general engineering consultant, said construction will begin between RM 2222 and Braker Lane this fall. The next phase will be RM 2222 to Lady Bird Lake in early 2014, and the final phase will be in mid-2014 from Braker to Parmer. The lanes will open in late 2015, and Reavey said a final completion date has been set for Jan. 15, 2016.

Reavey said so far the project is on schedule, and the contractor has met all the submittal dates for the design, which will be 100 percent complete in September.

"It's impressed upon the entire project team about how important this schedule is," she said.

Before construction starts, the Mobility Authority will host an open house Sept. 5 for the public to review and ask questions about four design changes that CH2M Hill, the design-build firm for the project, has proposed. The most significant change is how the express lanes will connect to Fifth and Cesar Chavez streets. Initially, overpasses were proposed, but CH2M Hill has suggested to use underpasses. This will reduce the visual footprint of the ramps and the impact to existing traffic during construction, according to the Mobility Authority.

Entry and exit points for the toll lanes will be at Parmer, north of RM 2222 and near Cesar Chavez where all drivers, including those not using the toll lanes, will be able to access Cesar Chavez or Fifth streets.

Resident Mike Sullivan, who is a member of the MoPac Neighborhood Association Coalition and the Old West Austin Neighborhood Association, said he opposes allowing drivers from the toll lanes access to Fifth Street because traffic is already a nightmare.

"We have been clear and loud and consistent, asking for this traffic to go across Cesar Chavez," he said. "Both these streets are within our neighborhood boundaries. We're not trying to get it out of our area. What we recognize is Cesar is already essentially an expressway. What we would like to see is Cesar Chavez become more of the gateway to downtown."

Allowing access to Fifth Street as well as Cesar Chavez from the toll lanes was not an easy decision, Mobility Authority Executive Director Mike Heiligenstein said.

"From an agency perspective, I think we would be irresponsible not to have [access to] both [Cesar Chavez] and Fifth Street," he said. "I think it's our responsibility to provide the network."

He said there was a lot of discussion regarding Fifth Street in 2011 when Heiligenstein met with Sullivan and other residents. Back then, Heiligenstein felt the issue was not yet resolved and asked that more studies be done on the effect of the toll lanes on Fifth Street.

"I really believe that there would be no additional traffic to Fifth Street as result of this lane, because all of the traffic going downtown at the peak hour is going to [Cesar Chavez] or Fifth anyway," he said.

Public outreach

Mario Espinoza, deputy executive director for the Mobility Authority, said the agency has been meeting with neighborhood and special interest groups as well as local officials to keep everyone apprised of the progress.

"We've had lots of activity related to community relations and outreach on this project," he said.

In September, the agency will launch its 24/7 hotline where anyone can call 512-270-5000 to ask questions about the project. An app will also be available to download on iPhone and Android smartphones. The Mobility Authority also will use AM 800 this fall to broadcast information about the progress of the project.

Upcoming meetings and events

Open house Sept. 5 from 5–8 p.m. at O. Henry Middle School, 2610 W. 10th St.

Ground-breaking ceremony Oct. 18 at 10:30 a.m. with state Sen. Kirk Watson and Mayor Lee Leffingwell

Meet and greet with the contractor Nov. 12 at O. Henry Middle School

More information about the MoPac Improvement Project is available at www.mopacexpress.com.