Capital MetroRail

Advocates of modern urban rail began calling on the city of Austin to develop a passenger rail system at the height of the 1970s energy crisis. When voters approved Capital Metro's creation in 1985, the agency was seen not only as the new operator of local bus services, but the developer of a future passenger rail as well. The next year, Capital Metro partnered with the City of Austin to purchase the 162-mile (261 km) Giddings-to-Llano Austin and Northwestern Railroad (A&NW) from the Southern Pacific Transportation Company with the express purpose of someday operating passenger rail on it.[7] The purchase price was $9.3 million, of which $6 million came from a grant from the Federal Transit Administration, $0.6 million came from the City of Austin and $2.7 million came from Capital Metro. On May 20, 1998,[8] Capital Metro acquired the City of Austin's share in the railroad for $1 million.[9]

During the 1990s, Capital Metro faced persistent bad publicity that resulted from dysfunctional management and poor accountability. After years of inaction on passenger rail, the Texas Legislature in 1997 stepped in and ordered the public transport provider to hold a referendum on light rail. In response, Capital Metro drew up an ambitious plan for a $1.9 billion, 52-mile (84 km) system to be funded by federal funds and local sales taxes. The 2000 proposal's 14-mile "starter segment" would have used the A&NW's right-of-way through Austin from a station at Howard Lane south to another at the Lamar / Airport intersection, then followed Lamar south to Guadalupe Street, and finally run along Guadalupe to serve the university and Downtown. Future phases would have extended passenger rail service along the entire A&NW right-of-way between Downtown and a Leander station, plus new tracks along South Congress Avenue and Riverside Drive.[10][11]

The 2000 proposal was narrowly defeated by 2,000 votes, receiving support from 49.6% of voters; most of central Austin voted in favor and suburban and exurban areas within the service area voted against.[12]

Capital Metro came back in 2004 with a significantly scaled-down version of its 2000 plan that it hoped voters in Travis County and Williamson County would find more palatable.[13] Rather than a comprehensive network of electric light rail vehicles, Capital Metro proposed a single diesel-fueled commuter rail line which would use the A&NW track between Downtown and Leander. The corridor was chosen for the first line after Capital Metro's Board identified the following areas as probable areas for future growth: the Highland Mall area, the master-planned Mueller Community redevelopment project, as well as the central business district, extending from the University of Texas at Austin to Lady Bird Lake.[14] MetroRail was presented to voters as part of the All Systems Go Long-Range Transit Plan, which also included expanded local and express bus service. The 2004 version was approved by 62% of voters in the service area.[15]

The organization at the time said they could have the system built by 2008 for a cost of $60 million, and borrow $30 million for six train cars to be paid back over a period of years. About $30 million of that cost, they said, would come from the federal government. However, Capital Metro never officially sought the federal money and revealed in 2010 it has spent $105 million on the system's construction, not $90 million as originally suggested. Additionally, the original 2008 launch date for Capital MetroRail was postponed two years due to multiple safety and construction issues.[16] Service on Capital MetroRail finally began on March 22, 2010.[17]

On June 26, 2014, TxDOT awarded CapMetro with a $50 million grant for the purchase of four new rail cars, which is anticipated to double capacity, and for general improvements to the Downtown MetroRail station.[18]

By 2015, CapMetro had taken the first steps in the planning of a permanent downtown station.[19] Although the estimates for cost of the proposed terminal were $30–35 million, $22 million of this sum came directly from a Texas Department of Transportation grant awarded to CapMetro in 2014.[20] Proponents of the station asserted that it will not only alleviate the congestion problems associated with the current downtown MetroRail terminal, but also serve as a cultural hub wherein future residents and visitors can easily access a number of current and potential amenities, including but not limited, to additional transit systems, shopping, and recreational activities.[19] The new permanent Downtown station opened on October 19, 2020.[21]

Capital Metro continued planning for a light rail network running between neighborhoods of Austin's urban core. After the failure of the system proposed in 2000, by 2014 CapMetro had settled on a new, more easterly proposed routing: 9.5 miles through South Austin along Riverside, through Downtown and UT along Trinity and San Jacinto, and north along Red River and Airport to ACC Highland. In November 2014, when asked to approve $600 million in bonds to be repaid by property taxes to fund the system, Austin-area voters again rejected light rail, with only 43% voting in favor.[22][23]

Currently the Capital MetroRail system only consists of the Red Line, which is alternately designated as Route 550 on internal Capital Metro documents. Its northern terminus is the Leander Station and Park & Ride and the southern terminus is the Downtown (Convention Center) Station. Each station features an accessible platform with varying canopy designs, ticket vending machines (TVM), bike racks, and informational displays. Its nine stations were constructed largely along existing freight rail tracks in cooperation with the City of Austin following a transit-oriented development (TOD) plan intended to encourage use of public transportation by developing mixed-use residential and commercial areas around the stations. Frequencies are expected to improve to 15 minutes after double tracking is completed between Lakeline and Leander.[26] The following Red Line stations are listed north to south:[27]

Though trains are available past midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, the last train leaving downtown Monday through Thursday is at 7:20pm.[28]

Construction was recently completed on a new passing siding between Park St. and Discovery Blvd. along the northernmost portion of the Red Line in Leander. This siding, along with various other improvements, will allow the Red Line to run 15-minute frequencies for the first time in its history, more than doubling the current maximum frequency of ~37 minutes. Construction on the siding was completed in November 2022.[34]

Capital Metro has plans to build a new rail line along the abandoned "MoKan" railway line, which is owned by TXDot,[35] to Georgetown, Round Rock, and Pflugerville.

As part of Project Connect, Capital Metro has proposed building 2 new stations along the Red Line, at McKalla Place (adjacent to the new Austin FC soccer stadium), and at Broadmoor (The Domain).[36][37][38] These would replace the existing Kramer station.

In September 2008, Capital Metro evaluated the need for rail service to alleviate pressure from congestion downtown to Colony Park, with a potential extension to Elgin. To fix this problem, CapMetro decided to plan for adding another rail line to their service, or the Green Line. The Green Line would operate with similar service characteristics as the Red Line, as it would also run on existing freight tracks with adjustments made to them to allow for passenger rail service.

Trains would depart the Red Line and begin to head east in between the Red Line stations MLK Jr. and Plaza Saltillo, where the first stop would be Pleasant Valley; more new stations will be at Springdale, East US 183, Loyola/Johnny Morris, and Colony Park. A potential future extension beyond Colony Park with new stations at Wildhorse, Manor, and Elgin.[39] The Green Line will be built from Downtown to Colony Park first, with the extension to Elgin considered at a later time. In December 2008, a presentation, and then a follow-up, were given to the CAMPO Transit Work Group about the Green Line. In May 2018, the Travis County Commissioners Court voted 3–2 to move forward with a viability study of the Green Line.[40]

North Lamar Transit Center, planned northern terminus of the Orange And Blue light rail lines

A contract was approved for the Orange Line on March 20, 2019. The Orange Line is a planned 20-mile (32 km) light rail line that will run in its own dedicated transitway, which will allow it to bypass the traffic that plagues the corridor it follows. The Orange Line will operate from North Lamar Transit Center to Stassney & Congress, and will follow the current route of the 801 or a similar alignment. The stations will be North Lamar Transit Center, Crestview (where a transfer to the Red Line will be possible), Koenig, Triangle, Hyde Park (38th), Hemphill Park (29th), UT West Mall (24th), Capitol West, Government Center, Republic Square, Auditorium Shores, SoCo, Oltorf, St. Edward's, South Congress Transit Center, and Stassney.[41][42] A potential future extension north to Tech Ridge and south to Slaughter is being considered. The new stations would be at Tech Ridge, Parmer, Braker, Rundberg, William Cannon, and Slaughter. In 2020, the planned route was truncated in length to reduce construction costs, with bus bridges providing connectivity through the rest of the corridor.[43]

The Blue Line is a planned 15-mile (24 km) light rail line that will operate from North Lamar Transit Center to Austin–Bergstrom International Airport. It will follow the Orange Line's route from North Lamar Transit Center to Republic Square, and will follow the current route of MetroBus route 20 or a similar alignment to Austin–Bergstrom International Airport. New stations will be North Lamar Transit Center, Crestview (where a transfer to the Red Line will be possible), Koenig, Triangle, Hyde Park (38th), Hemphill Park (29th), UT West Mall (24th), Capitol West, Government Center, Republic Square, Downtown Station, Macc/Rainey, Waterfront, Travis Heights, Lakeshore, Riverside, Faro, Montopolis, Metrocenter, and Austin–Bergstrom International Airport.[39]

The Gold Line is a planned 9.5-mile (15.3 km) bus rapid transit line that would operate from Austin Community College's Highland campus to the South Congress Transit Center park-and-ride, and will travel on Airport, Red River, San Jacinto/Trinity, 7th/8th, Neches/Red River, 4th, Riverside, and South Congress. Stations will be ACC Highland, Clarkson, Hancock, St. David's, UT East, Medical School, Capitol East, Trinity, Downtown Station (where transfer to the Red, Green, or Blue Lines will be possible), Republic Square, Auditorium Shores, SoCo (South Congress), Oltorf, St. Edward's, and South Congress Transit Center.[39] The Gold Line was changed to light rail in May 2020, citing a demographic that showed an increased projected ridership along the gold line that prompted its conversion to light rail.[44] In July 2020, planning for the line was reverted to bus service to lower construction costs in response to the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.[43]