Austin Transit Vision Missing the Mark

I came across the Project Connect Transit Vision for Austin this week and had mixed emotions about it:

• the map's graphics are believable... I and perhaps others can start to see how a rail system might work in Austin
• the urban rail proposal seems awkward and disjointed

As native Austinite, I am familiar with the tendency to stay in the suburban bubble. The need to attract commuters into the city is essentially what the current Leander-Downtown line rail aims to do, but it fails to serve anyone else.

As a UT student, I desire to use public transportation, but I am frustrated by its inconvenience and inefficiency. Austin is growing too quickly to keep relying on cars and, to a lesser extent, buses. We have the unique opportunity to plan a rail system essentially from scratch in comparison to the NYC subway system, which originated from two transit companies competing for commuters with redundant lines. New Yorkers are still having to live with those inefficiencies.

Before we can work to bring in regional communities, we have to serve the downtown community. Commuters will continue to use their car if there is no reliable and efficient way to get around downtown once they arrive via rail. I suggest the following:

• Phase 1: (North-South Connection) Domain - Seton/Central Market - UT/Guad - Capitol - 6th St - SoCo - St Ed's - Southpark Meadows
• Phase 2: (East - West) Airport (ABIA) - Riverside - SoCo - Auditorium Shores - South Lamar - Barton Springs/Zilker - Barton Creek Mall

By anchoring lines at Austin's main shopping malls and the airport, people can park and ride using the existing parking structures. Each mall could serve as the hub for that sector and could connect to regional rail lines from there.The use of buses could then be focused on bringing people to the rail stops instead of trying to serve as major arteries.

Project Connect Transit Vision (June 2012)