Support a Smarter Alternative for Mopac South

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We know how much you love Austin's natural resources, like Barton Springs and the Barton Creek Greenbelt. That's why we need your help to protect these treasures from the threat of the Mopac South expansion.

The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority (CTRMA) is pushing ahead with a misguided plan to add 4 toll lanes (or, 7, if you count auxiliary lanes) to Mopac South, inviting a surge of traffic, pollution, and environmental destruction. This expansion would widen bridges over sensitive creeks, damage delicate habitats, and disrupt the peace and beauty of the greenbelt.

Even worse, the entire 8-mile stretch sits on top of the Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone, putting our precious Barton Springs at risk of contamination from increased runoff.

But here's the kicker: the CTRMA won't even conduct a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to thoroughly study these risks and consider smarter alternatives. They're rushing ahead with an outdated mindset that more lanes equal better transportation, ignoring the pleas of the Travis County Commissioners Court and the local community for a more sustainable approach.

That's where you come in.

We need a wave of public comments demanding that the CTRMA hit the brakes on this reckless expansion and explore a "low-build" alternative that focuses on strategic upgrades rather than a massive widening. Think . . . improved lane efficiency, better public transit, and targeted improvements that don't sacrifice our environment for a few extra miles of asphalt.

The deadline is December 29th at midnight, so we don't have a moment to lose. Will you take a few minutes right now to submit a comment and make your voice heard?

Together, we can steer the CTRMA toward a solution that protects the soul of Austin – our clean water, fresh air, and wild spaces. For the love of Barton Springs, let's do this!

- Save Our Springs, in partnership with Keep Mopac Local.

P.S. Stay in the loop by following @KeepMopacLocal on Instagram and Facebook. We'll keep you posted on the latest developments and more ways to get involved in this fight for Austin's future.

Fill in this form to send in a comment to the Virtual Open House #6 or send comments directly to mopacsouth@ctrma.org.

Website for the project's official open house website.

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CAMPO Board Members and Campo Comments

Subject: Mopac South Needs a Full Environmental Impact Statement

Message:

I submit this comment in opposition to the proposed expansion of MoPac South and urge the CTRMA to conduct a comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to fully evaluate the environmental consequences of MoPac South. I request that, as part of an EIS, CTRMA prioritize a “low-build” alternative that focuses on affordable, simple upgrades to the roadway, including resolving bottlenecks, improving signage, and enhancing public transit. The expansion of MoPac South poses a direct threat to the environmental integrity of several creeks and public spaces along its 8-mile stretch, including Barton Springs, Lady Bird Lake, the Hike and Bike Trail, Zilker Park, and the Barton Creek greenbelt. Use and enjoyment of these spaces will be impaired through increased noise, air pollution, and polluted highway runoff. MoPac South expansion would violate the local standards set by the Save Our Springs Initiative Ordinance, approved overwhelmingly by Austin voters. The SOS Ordinance ensures non-degradation of the groundwater flows that replenish Barton Springs, an endangered species habitat for the Austin Blind and Barton Springs Salamanders. The construction and increased impervious cover that will result from the highway expansion immediately upstream of Barton Springs will contaminate this habitat and directly harm these species and their habitat. These harms can be avoided with a more modest-scaled upgrades to MoPac. The current study also fails to consider the cumulative impacts that will result from extending SH 45 SW to I-35, the design of which was recently approved by Hays County. Once this segment is constructed, the character of MoPac South as a local parkway will be fundamentally changed, handling increased truck and car traffic, as a western loop. Failing to acknowledge and consider these impacts and the traffic that will be generated onto MoPac South as part of this ongoing study will underestimate the air, noise, and water quality impacts that will occur as a result of this project.

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