Blue Line (Capital Metro)

The Blue Line is a planned light rail line for connecting Austin–Bergstrom International Airport with the downtown Austin, Texas area in the United States. It is still in the planning stages as a part of Capital Metro's Project Connect. It is estimated to begin revenue service as early as 2028.[1]

Blue Line
Overview
StatusIn planning
LocaleAustin, Texas
TerminiNorth Lamar Transit Center
Austin–Bergstrom International Airport
Stations20
Service
TypeLight rail
SystemCapital MetroRail
Operator(s)Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority
History
Planned opening2028
Route diagram

North Lamar Transit Center
     Red Line to Leander
Crestview
Koenig
Triangle
Hyde Park
Hemphill Park
UT/West Mall
Capitol West
Government Center
Republic Square
     Orange Line to Stassney
Downtown
     Red Line to Leander
     Green Line to Colony Park
MACC/Rainey
Waterfront
Travis Heights
Lakeshore
Riverside
Faro
Montopolis
Metrocenter
AUS

History

North Lamar Transit Center, the planned northern terminus of the line, seen in 2008

Austin's 2013 East Riverside Corridor Plan called for high-capacity transit to be installed along East Riverside Drive. This became part of the original Blue Line, which failed to find support in 2014 and was shelved. The Gold Line was formed from a segment of this original proposal, and is expected to be built as a separate bus rapid transit line.[1]

In 2018, Capital Metro announced a new long-range planning project entitled Project Connect that outlines several major transit corridors consisting of commuter rail, light rail, and bus rapid transit.[2] The Blue Line corridor will include a transit pathway for a light rail or bus rapid transit line running on the west side of Downtown Austin to Austin–Bergstrom International Airport in southeast Austin.[3] The line was included as part of the Project Connect referendum during the 2020 United States presidential election.[1][4]

Proposed route

South to north, from Austin–Bergstrom International Airport to the North Lamar Transit Center.

Station Parking Rail connections Bus connections Nearby points of interest
Airport MetroBus 20 Austin–Bergstrom International Airport
Metrocenter No MetroBus 271 Austin Airport Hotels
Montopolis No MetroBus 20 Montopolis Park, Tokyo Electron
Faro No MetroBus 20, 310 Austin Public Library, Riverside Golf Course
Riverside MetroBus 20, 300, 483 Park Greene Shopping Center
Lakeshore MetroBus 7, 20, 483 Oracle Corporation
Travis Heights No MetroBus 7, 20, 483, 935, 987 Austin Housing Authority, Norwood Park
Waterfront No MetroBus 7, 20, 483 South Congress, Texas Department of Transportation, Austin American-Statesman, Lady Bird Lake
MACC/Rainey No MetroBus 17 Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center
Downtown No MetroBus 451
Capital MetroRapid Gold Line
Austin Convention Center, Downtown Austin, Rainey Street
Republic Square No Capital MetroRapid 801, 803, Gold Line
MetroBus 105, 111, 171, 980, 981, 985
Republic Square, Sixth Street, Texas State Board of Nursing, United States Federal Court
Government Center No Capital MetroRapid 801, 803
MetroBus 1, 3, 19, 20, 105, 985
Wooldridge Square Park, Austin Public Library, Travis County Civil Courthouse
Capitol West No Capital MetroRapid 801, 803
MetroBus 1, 3, 19, 20, 105, 985
Texas State Capitol, Travis County Adult Probation, Texas Alliance of Child and Family Services
UT/West Mall No Capital MetroRapid 801, 803
MetroBus 1, 3, 19, 20, 105, 640, 982, 990
University of Texas at Austin, Peter T. Flawn Academic Center, Goldsmith Hall, Sutton Hall, Battle Hall, Parlin Hall, Rainey Hall, Harry Ransom Center
Hemphill Park No MetroBus 1, 3, 19, 642 University of Texas at Austin, Phi Gamma Delta, Scottish Rite Dormitory
Hyde Park No Capital MetroRapid 801, 803
MetroBus 1, 3, 19, 335
Hyde Park, Austin State Hospital, Central Market, Heart Hospital of Austin
Triangle Capital MetroRapid 801
MetroBus 1, 345, 656, 990
Hyde Park, The Triangle, Texas Facilities Commission, UT Intramural Fields, UT Microfarm, The Triangle Park
Koenig No Capital MetroRapid 801
MetroBus 1, 337
Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas Highway Patrol, McCallum High School
Crestview No Capital MetroRapid 801
MetroBus 1, 7, 300, 324, 350
Crestview Station, Midtown Commons, Texas DPS Credit Union, Black Star Co-op
North Lamar Transit Center Capital MetroRapid 801
MetroBus 1, 323, 350, 383
Anderson Square Shopping Center

References

  1. Clark-Madison, Mike (25 September 2020). "From Light Rail to a Downtown Tunnel: The Parts of Project Connect". Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  2. Mark D. Wilson. "Cap Metro unveils new vision for Project Connect - News - Austin American-Statesman - Austin, TX". Statesman.com. Retrieved 2019-11-23.
  3. Thursday, October 11, 2018 by Jack Craver (2018-10-11). "Project Connect: Cap Metro insists everything is on the table - Austin MonitorAustin Monitor". Austinmonitor.com. Retrieved 2019-11-23.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. Claiborne, Casey. "Cap Metro's 'Orange', 'Blue' Lines could be very different types of transit for Austin". FOX 7 Austin. Retrieved 2019-11-23.


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