The stretch of South Lamar Boulevard between Riverside Drive and Barton Springs Road will lose some street, gain some bicycle lanes and (hopefully) get a little safer.
The Austin City Council approved a construction contract Thursday to make changes to the busy street; it’s one part of the road adjustments voters approved in the $720 million mobility bond in 2016.
Here’s where those changes will be made:
One of the biggest changes may be the loss of street in order to add two-way protected bike lanes on both sides of Lamar. The city will get rid of the continuous right-turn lanes, so each side of the street drops from three to two lanes. The city will also reconstruct the road medians, install accessible and continuous sidewalks, and plant trees.
The city will upgrade the traffic signals at three intersections: Riverside Drive, Toomey Road and Barton Springs Road. According to city data, the intersection at Barton Springs and South Lamar was one of the more dangerous in the area, with 57 crashes over a five-year period.
Construction is expected to start early next year and finish in early 2022.
Got a tip? Email Audrey McGlinchy at audrey@kut.org. Follow her on Twitter @AKMcGlinchy.
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