The Austin Transportation Department will roll out bus- and bike-minded improvements on Lavaca and Guadalupe streets, with construction starting next month.
The project, which is funded by the 2016 mobility bond, will install a light for buses to turn from Lavaca Street left onto 18th Street, and then allow them to go against traffic on Guadalupe on a so-called contraflow lane for a block before merging into traffic north of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
Capital Metro expects the project to make the 801 and 803 routes more reliable by allowing buses to bypass the light at MLK.
The Austin Transportation Department expects the tweak to cut down on congestion at MLK, shaving about a minute off travel times for Cap Metro buses during rush hour. The project will also improve bike lanes at Lavaca and MLK, including a new path for cyclists and pedestrians.
In a memo to the Austin City Council, the department said construction will last until September, though some work could take until the end of the year.
