$105M federal grant for Austin's I-35 ‘cap and stitch' project on shaky ground

Yahoo

20-02-2025

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin City Council members received several major transportation updates during its Mobility Committee meeting Thursday including how federal grants may be impacted by changes in federal leadership and a progress update on Austin's light rail project.
The committee also looked at the mobility project planning process and got a report from the Transportation and Public Works Department (TPWD) on mobility programs and projects in progress. You can find the full meeting details here.
TPWD said city staff are reviewing current and pending federal funding agreements after the Department of Transportation (DOT) put out new guidance on how funding will be distributed to better align with the priorities of President Donald Trump's administration.
Austin 'to monitor' for impact of Trump orders, $1.2B in federal grants 'jeopardized': Memo
Federal grants that have already been awarded and executed 'may be on stronger footing,' city staff said.
Still, $220 million in grants for transportation projects could be in jeopardy, the Intergovernmental Relations Office said in a memo.
Some of the pending federal transportation funding that transportation staff are watching closely include:
$105 million for the I-35 Cap and Stitch project
$32 million for the Barton Springs Road Bridge
$10 million on 'Safer Streets for All'
'I apologize I am not here with better news,' Carrie Rogers, intergovernmental relations officer for the city of Austin's TPWD, said. She later continued: 'What we have asked staff to do is continue proceeding as they were before.'
Caps and stitches are the green spaces, pedestrian access and infrastructure over and through TxDOT's I-35 expansion project. Though the expansion project is TxDOT's, the city of Austin is responsible for paying for any caps and stitches it wants added to the project. The goal of those caps and stitches is to better connect the city, instead of that highway being a barrier between central and east Austin.
Richard Mendoza, director of the Austin Transportation and Public Works Department, has previously told KXAN the cap and stitch project could cost anywhere from $600 million to $800 million to fully construct the decks as well as the amenities on top.
The city will need to make a formal commitment to the Texas Department of Transportation on those caps and stitches — along with associated funding soon. After TxDOT delayed a vote late last year, Austin City Council is slated for a March 2025 vote on those funding commitments, KXAN most previously reported.
Austin's vote on multi-million-dollar I-35 capping program delayed
'I do think it's fair to say, and we want to make sure that leadership understands, it's going to be a very different time,' Rogers said. 'Those very large grants may be out of reach for us for some time.'
Perhaps a question you're asking — when will the light rail voters approved be built?
As is indicated on ATP's Project Connect website, Austin Transportation Partnership staff told city council members they're currently in the planning, early design and project development phase. That phase involves gathering public feedback.
In 2026-2027 ATP will move to engineering, permitting and final design and in 2027-2033 ATP expects to begin the construction and testing phase, staff said.
New stations, urban greenway detailed in Austin's Project Connect light rail impact draft
'The ground will be prepped and excavated. Light rail tracks, stations, and pedestrian and cyclist paths will be built. Trains will be manufactured, delivered and tested,' ATP's website said of that construction and testing phase.
ATP staff also walked city council members through several updates to the Project Connect light rail phase 1 plan that were introduced through the draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) released last month. One proposal is the introduction of a pedestrian and bike lane for the duration of the five stations planned for East Riverside Drive. You can read more about those proposed changes and the DEIS here.
KXAN has a landing page dedicated to coverage of Project Connect. You can find all the latest updates and reports here.
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