About ETOD Station Area Vision Plans

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and feedback! As part of the ongoing Equitable Transit-Oriented Development (ETOD) study, CapMetro, in partnership with the City of Austin and Austin Transit Partnership, is developing ETOD Station Area Vision Plans for the North Lamar Transit Center and South Congress Transit Center areas. With an intentional focus on equity, Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) aims to both protect and improve the quality of life of existing communities that may otherwise be unintentionally impacted by major infrastructure investment. With these outcomes, impacts are minimized while opportunities are maximized. The ETOD Station Area Plans will set priorities for land uses and area characteristics within a half mile of each Transit Center (which is a ½ mile radius or 10-minute walk from the Transit Center).

Learn more about previous engagement and stay up-to-date at this website: https://projectconnect.com/projects/etod 

ETOD Goals

The community has been a part of shaping the ETOD study from the beginning including the ETOD goals that have guided the study. These are also the goals guiding the North Lamar Transit Center and South Congress Transit Center Station Area Vision Plans.
 

  1. Enable All Residents to Benefit from Safe, Sustainable, & Accessible Transportation 
  2. Preserve and Increase Housing Opportunities that are Affordable & Attainable 
  3. Help to Close Racial Health & Wealth Gaps 
  4. Support Healthy Neighborhoods That Meet Daily Needs 
  5. Expand Access to High-Quality Jobs & Career Opportunities 
  6. Expand Austin’s diverse cultural heritage and small, BIPOC-owned, and legacy businesses

Why North Lamar Transit Center and South Congress Transit Center?

A traditional transit center like the present-day North Lamar Transit Center and South Congress Transit Center is a sheltered waiting area located where public transportation routes converge and where you can transfer between different buses and sometimes rail. However, CapMetro sees the future of their Transit Centers as places that can better serve the community beyond the traditional functions. CapMetro wants to envision alongside the community Transit Centers that support multiple uses and functions besides transit, such as affordable housing, job training centers, community space, childcare, or quality civic space.

The North Lamar Transit Center and South Congress Transit Center present opportunities to move forward with the ETOD Goals and better serve the community. These two station areas share similarities, since they both have CapMetro-owned and operated Transit Centers today, but are also different enough that we want to make sure that the different existing communities are reflected in each of the Station Area Vision Plans. Additionally, since there is publicly owned land in these areas, they represent a great opportunity to reach our ETOD Goals.