Austin City Council approved a resolution directing city staff to work with regional transportation agencies to prioritize safety, walking, biking and transit in proposed Parmer Lane improvements amid concerns that a plan to convert the corridor into a multilane highway could increase traffic, noise and pollution.
The background
For several years, the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization and the Texas Department of Transportation have been collaborating to recommend potential improvements for the section of Parmer Lane east of MoPac as part of the CAMPO Project Readiness Program.
The program is a partnership between CAMPO and TxDOT to plan for future transportation needs.
In 2021, CAMPO’s Transportation Policy Board adopted 10 regional corridors that connect growing residential, employment and activity centers throughout the region to study and prepare for future transportation improvement projects.
Among the 10 corridors chosen is Parmer Lane.
At a Sept. 14 CAMPO Transportation Policy Meeting, one proposal revealed from the corridor study was converting Parmer Lane, between RM 1431 and MoPac, into a four-lane highway with four frontage road lanes north of SH 45, and two highway lanes plus six frontage road lanes south of SH 45.
The issue
The recommendation prompted backlash from transportation advocacy groups and nearby neighbors and business owners, who argued that converting the road into a highway would make it more dangerous, increase noise and pollution and make it more difficult to walk, bike and use public transit.
“Parmer Lane is home to apartments, offices, shops and childcare centers … . People live here, work here and send their kids to school here,” Council member Krista Laine said. “I’m not confident that sufficient analysis has been completed to conclude that the current plan in fact best serves the many Austin residents along this corridor, now or in the future.”
According to the approved resolution, CAMPO’s proposal does not fit within Austin’s goals to reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips.
The city has adopted a 50-50 mode share goal to reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips to no more than 50% of all trips by 2039 to combat traffic congestion and accommodate population growth.
Per an estimate from Connected Central Texas using the State Highway Induced Frequency of Travel calculator, the recommended conversion of Parmer Lane would bring about 40–75 million more vehicle miles of driving a year.
“Austin already has more highway lanes per capita than any other large metro in Texas, and that’s before all the new lanes being added to I-35 and proposed for MoPac,” Miriam Schoenfield, Connected Central Texas board president, said. “Nobody has ever visited Austin and said, ‘You know what this city needs more of is highways.’”
What’s next
The recommendations from CAMPO are not final, and there is no public timeline for moving the project forward.
Yet, approval of the resolution allows Austin city staff to work with CAMPO and TxDOT to encourage plans that incorporate walking paths, bike lanes, transit and other elements to ensure safety for pedestrians and drivers.
“Imagine a different Parmer Lane where people can visit their friends, families can bike to the park and older neighbors can move around their community with confidence,” District 6 resident Jose Loyola said. “This resolution gives us an opportunity to imagine a Parmer Lane that connects communities rather than divide them.”
