⟵ Advocacy: Mobility

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26.07.22 Mid-Year Issues Update

Wins:

1. Downtown Density Bonus Program’s Urban Design Standards: City will re-engage AIA Austin and other stakeholders to refine standards
   1. City’s workplan due to Council in August
   2. Considering hosting an architects’ lunch series to charrette desired improvements
2. I-35 Cap & Stitch: City funding secured for roadway elements of 14-acre vision
   1. Now tracking partnership fundraising led by DAA and Economic Development department
3. Streetscape Standards Update Resolution passed by Council
4. Barton Creek Road Bridge: Proposed demolition delayed due to significant pushback and proposed landmarking of the bridge
   1. Awaiting alternative plans from ongoing NEPA process, for multimodal improvements

Active Priority Issues:

1. Great Streets Update and Streetscape Standards TCM Implementation
   1. Green Infrastructure Working Group has reactivated to track city’s work, especially regarding street tree requirements
   2. Streetscape standards and funding for transit first/last mile access
2. I-35 ROW / Frontage Road Design Improvements
   1. Advocating for street trees and pedestrian safety improvements

 Tracking Issues:

1. City’s 2026 Bond Package
2. Dog’s Head Planning (ASMP Revision and Development Regulations)
3. Project Connect (Austin Light Rail)
4. ACT Plan Implementation and Two-Way Reversions
5. Central City District Plan
6. MoPac South Expansion
7. East 51^st Street Project

26.04.09 April Roundtable: Citywide & Downtown Density Bonus Updates

On April 9, the Advocacy Commission presented a joint Roundtable between the Mobility and Housing Affordability tactical committees. Austin’s density bonus programs allow modified building standards, such as increased height, in exchange for community benefits like affordable housing, street activation, and improvements to the public realm. City of Austin Planning staff presented draft revisions intended to consolidate and clarify existing bonus tools, refine gatekeeper requirements and community benefit options, and address concerns related to accountability and impacts on existing housing. View their slide decks here:

-2026-04-09 AIA Briefing Citywide DB
-DDB Phase 1 – Proposal AIA

26.02.23 February Roundtable: Two-Way Street Reversions

On February 23, Adam Greenfield with Safe Streets Austin shared the current evidence-based principles of street design and how they relate to current planning efforts underway in Austin, with the following objectives:

• Understand the history of one-way versus two-way traffic planning, especially in Austin.
• Consider the value proposition for converting downtown streets to two-way traffic, including the benefits to pedestrians and drivers of safer roads and more direct access to buildings.
• Appreciate the time-sensitive opportunity to integrate two-way streets into Austin’s ongoing plans and regulatory updates, thus improving traffic circulation, safety, and the welfare of Austin’s citizens.
• Engage in a discussion about the benefits, drawbacks, needed resources, and next steps for street conversions in Austin, particularly focusing on how the proposed conversions would impact quality of life for Austinites.

26.01.08 Potential Priorities for 2026

The Mobility Committee’s priorities for 2026 may include:

• Inclusion of Safe Streets and two-way street conversions in the city’s 2026 Bond package and in the new Austin Core Transportation Plan (adoption delayed to 2026)
• Urban design enhancements to TxDOT’s I-35 frontage road schematics
• Planning and urban design of I-35’s northern deck stitches and the surrounding neighborhood centers (Hancock-Cherrywood)
• Policy improvements to Austin’s Great Streets Program update and its integration into the Density Bonus Program, the upcoming Central City District Plan, and other city development codes
• Unified streetscape design standards for Project Connect light rail corridor, stations, and vicinities
• Finalization of city’s zoning proposals, including the Equitable Transit-Oriented Development (ETOD) Overlay, the University Neighborhood Overlay, and their integration into the Density Bonus Program

25.11.10 I-35 Frontage Road Design Improvements

In our second official AIA Austin advocacy letter of 2025, the committee mobilized a substantial cohort of supporters and articulated clear and specific recommendations for improving the proposed design of the frontage roads in TxDOT’s I-35 Capital Express Central project. Interfacing with the urban heart of Austin, these roads have the potential to comfortably integrate the future caps and stitches with the surrounding blocks and neighborhoods, or become an unsafe barrier to pedestrians and all other modes of movement. The letter includes schematic street sections comparing TxDOT’s current designs to the committee’s recommended design improvements, working within the feasible constraints of TxDOT’s engineering process. The committee proactively engaged with leadership and representatives from the City, County, TxDOT, and the Texas Legislature in the preparation and dissemination of this letter. Our recommendations for design adjustments include integrating utility-free landscape zones for street trees on roads and bridges, managed on-street parking during off-peak hours, removing free-right turn lanes, 11-foot lane widths, 30 mph speed limits, pedestrian refuge islands, pedestrian-first signal timing, and buffering proposed shared use paths from any required clear zones for errant vehicles.

25.10.28 October Roundtable: What’s Next for Austin’s Streets?

Austin’s rapid growth is often viewed as redeveloped neighborhoods and new high-rises, but upcoming projects promise to reshape how we experience and move through central Austin, with $25 billion in infrastructure and transportation investments planned for downtown Austin alone. Join us for a discussion on what’s coming – from vast projects like I-35 and Project Connect to iconic streets like Congress Avenue and a new Green Infrastructure toolkit. We’ll also take a deeper dive into ongoing advocacy around I-35, including deck parks (cap & stitch), pedestrian improvements along frontage roads, and stitches connecting the Cherrywood and Hancock neighborhoods.

Panelists:

• Jim Walker – Director of Sustainability at UT Austin, Chair of the Cherrywood Neighborhood Association
• Jana McCann, FAIA – CEO of McCann Adams Studio
• Michael Hsu, AIA – Chair of the AIA Austin Mobility Advocacy Committee

Slide Deck Here

25.10.02 Community Engagement: I-35 Northern Stitches Re-Engagement Meeting

A push has begun to re-engage the community around defining preferred options for the two, “Northern Stitches” for I-35, in the area near the new 41st Bridge crossing of I-35, flanking the Hancock and Cherrywood neighborhoods. A larger, community-wide meeting will be hosted by the City of Austin before Thanksgiving to further deliberate on different options for these stitches, and to narrow them down to 2 or 3 options for TxDOT’s consideration. The slide show below was presented at a small gathering of community leaders on September 29, 2025, to “prime the pump” on the vision, goals, and ideas for these new connective structures.

Slide Deck for this Meeting

25.04.08 City Funding Secured for I-35 Cap & Stitch Roadway Elements

The Mobility Committee celebrates the results of its recent advocacy for the Interstate 35 cap and stitch project. Efforts including renderings, public testimony, and an official letter of support from the president of AIA Austin helped to encourage Austin City Council to approve $104 million in funds for necessary roadway elements. These elements will make possible 11 acres of caps as well as two narrower stitches over the future sunken and widened expressway, between Cesar Chavez Street and Airport Boulevard. These interventions will help restitch Austin’s pedestrian fabric, mitigate air and noise pollution, provide new green space and amenities, and encourage adjacent development and investment on both public and private land.

25.03.24 March Roundtable: Updates to the University Neighborhood Overlay District

Planning Department’s webpage for the UNO. See their Roundtable presentation below.