Funding pulled for SH45 SW (Houston, Dallas: construction, university, subdivisions)

[rangergrit]

I see reference to "circle c' and "cc". Exactly which road is that

[jobert]

Originally Posted by rangergrit

I see reference to "circle c' and "cc". Exactly which road is that

Circle C is a community in SW Austin.

[jobert]

Originally Posted by jobert

A question to the CC people: Would I be right to assume that the rush hour traffic on Mopac is worse in the evenings than in the morning? I'm not asking if it's bad per se, but noticably more congested?

I did a little digging online, and confimed the answer I was looking for: "yes" - it appears southbound Mopac is more congested in the afternoons than northbound Mopac is in the morning - not horribly, but noticably moreso. I think this has everything to do with the absense of SH45, and the resulting backup on Brodie. If the tollway was completed, it would be safe to further hypothesize that morning rush hour would become noticably worse on Mopac. It is fortunate for Circle C and SW Austin that SH45 will not be considered for another 5 years at the minimum, and not constructed for at least several years after that. In the meantime, the outlook for Shady Hollow and Hays looks pretty bad.

[ImOnFiya]

FYI: Here was my letter to Commissioner Huber on the issue...

Karen, Please Support State Funding of SH-45 and Here's Why‏
From: xoxoxo
Sent: Tue 5/11/10 8:56 PM
To: karen.huber@co.travis.tx.us

Commissioner Huber,

As a loyal Democrat hoping for your election and a supporter of responsible environmentalism, I must admit that your apparent behavior on SH-45 has been disturbing. During the campaign, Commissioner Huber, you clearly misrepresented her position supporting the road, knowing that (as a closet, strict environmentalist) you would never gotten elected in SW Austin advocating the killing of SH-45.

Even now, Commissioner, you cannot clearly state why Texas funding should be pulled, when almost everyone knows SH-45 is where the worst traffic jam is located in SW Austin.

To top it off, Ms. Huber, you only won by razor-thin 2%. Clearly on SH-45, you are being disingenuous with the district.

You must remember, in the position of County Commissioner, you are representative of the people, not yourself, or of a pre-conceived, strict environmentalist agenda.

Karen, the clear majority of your district has spoken and clearly advocates for SH-45 state funding.

Please think about what voting "No" means: The road (SH-45) is not going away and neither is continued new development. The SH-45 traffic jam will develop into the traffic disaster as suburban SW Austin and NW Hays County mushrooms over the years,dwarfing the much improved, though still problematic Oak Hill "Y" spur.

Yours and Travis County Commissioners' potential inaction will only make a problem worse later on, plus adding probably tens of millions in cost overruns (due to material price increases over time) to the eventual completion of the road.

As you quoted in the Statesman saying, "You'll probably going to get your road."

Yes, but we'd rather have it with you as Precinct 3 Commissioner, than with your eventual replacement.

Unfortunately, Commissioner Huber, if you do not change your current position to match the majority of Precinct 3 voters. Being elected without a strong mandate, you will most likely lose re-election and gain nothing for the environment.

Yes, Ms. Huber, this is one of those crucial votes in your commissionership. But, No, focusing on the already improved Oak Hill Y, won't alleviate your voters' concerns.

Karen, do the right thing. Clearly, the voters have spoken and made themselves heard. Please do your job as their representative on the Travis County Commissioners Court and vote for state funding on SH-45 and help alleviate the traffic pain of the fastest growing segment of Austin and Travis County.

Sincerely,

XOXOXO

[AustinSpartan]

Originally Posted by ImOnFiya

FYI: Here was my letter to Commissioner Huber on the issue...

Karen, Please Support State Funding of SH-45 and Here's Why‏
From: xoxoxo
Sent: Tue 5/11/10 8:56 PM
To: karen.huber@co.travis.tx.us

Commissioner Huber,

As a loyal Democrat hoping for your election and a supporter of responsible environmentalism, I must admit that your apparent behavior on SH-45 has been disturbing. During the campaign, Commissioner Huber, you clearly misrepresented her position supporting the road, knowing that (as a closet, strict environmentalist) you would never gotten elected in SW Austin advocating the killing of SH-45.

Even now, Commissioner, you cannot clearly state why Texas funding should be pulled, when almost everyone knows SH-45 is where the worst traffic jam is located in SW Austin.

To top it off, Ms. Huber, you only won by razor-thin 2%. Clearly on SH-45, you are being disingenuous with the district.

You must remember, in the position of County Commissioner, you are representative of the people, not yourself, or of a pre-conceived, strict environmentalist agenda.

Karen, the clear majority of your district has spoken and clearly advocates for SH-45 state funding.

Please think about what voting "No" means: The road (SH-45) is not going away and neither is continued new development. The SH-45 traffic jam will develop into the traffic disaster as suburban SW Austin and NW Hays County mushrooms over the years,dwarfing the much improved, though still problematic Oak Hill "Y" spur.

Yours and Travis County Commissioners' potential inaction will only make a problem worse later on, plus adding probably tens of millions in cost overruns (due to material price increases over time) to the eventual completion of the road.

As you quoted in the Statesman saying, "You'll probably going to get your road."

Yes, but we'd rather have it with you as Precinct 3 Commissioner, than with your eventual replacement.

Unfortunately, Commissioner Huber, if you do not change your current position to match the majority of Precinct 3 voters. Being elected without a strong mandate, you will most likely lose re-election and gain nothing for the environment.

Yes, Ms. Huber, this is one of those crucial votes in your commissionership. But, No, focusing on the already improved Oak Hill Y, won't alleviate your voters' concerns.

Karen, do the right thing. Clearly, the voters have spoken and made themselves heard. Please do your job as their representative on the Travis County Commissioners Court and vote for state funding on SH-45 and help alleviate the traffic pain of the fastest growing segment of Austin and Travis County.

Sincerely,

XOXOXO

Dear people who live in BFE,

Move closer to town and stop the suburban sprawl.

<3,

Austin

[TexasHorseLady]

Southwest is one of the more environmentally sensitive areas, is it not?

I'm far from being a "strict environmentalist", but I do think it would be nice to think ahead a bit about the consequences of our actions beyond "I want to live there".

[jobert]

on a positive note, I drove through the intersection of I-35 and Ben White, and noticed crews and equipment in the middle of building the remaining flyovers!! whooo-hooo!!

This means: No more back up, then exiting Ben White, then sitting on the access road, then waiting at a light to turn right, then getting on the ramp to go southbound on I-35 anymore!, and no more of the same when I go to and from ABIA either!

So far, the holes have been dug, and rebar lowered into them for the concrete piers, the ground has been leveled to receive the flyover at the ramp connections, and the column rebar frames are on site as well. I was shocked at how much work they've done in such a short amount of time. It should be done by the end of the year, if not sooner.

This will make it a whole lot easier to travel everywhere else from south Austin.

[verybadgnome]

Originally Posted by AustinSpartan

Dear people who live in BFE,

Move closer to town and stop the suburban sprawl.

<3,

Austin

I think some people want their cake and eat it too. It's going to make for some interesting bond elections next time if most of the proposed roads are in undeveloped areas. I mean why would anyone within 7 miles of downtown vote to raise their property taxes for roads like 1626 which only really help Hays County commuters? I mean if its two lanes now that is good enough for me on my weekend excursions to the south.

[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by AustinSpartan

Dear people who live in BFE,

Move closer to town and stop the suburban sprawl.

<3,

Austin

Oak Hill is already closer to downtown Austin then most of North Austin.

[TexasHorseLady]

But one can readily get to downtown Austin from Oak Hill without needing 45. I used to do it all the time (daily, in fact, twice), and still do it fairly frequently.

"Downtown", by the way, does not constitute Austin or "town". In fact, most folks that I know hardly ever go downtown. (UT doesn't constitute downtown, either, for that matter.)