The road to hell is all torn up

/ Austin / 9 Comments

While I was under the impression that the Austin city budget was hit harder by the recession than most cities, apparently I was wrong. Current city roadwork projects underway in the more-or-less central part of town include:

  • South First
  • North Lamar (this isn’t even expected to be completed until mid-2005)
  • Guadalupe & 45th Street
  • Koenig/Allandale
  • East Cesar Chavez

And that doesn’t include the eternal mess at I-35/Ben White, which is a TxDOT project.

I am genuinely curious: where has the city found the money to pay for all these projects? Did we pass a bond or something? And why are they hell-bent on taking on so many major projects in a relatively small, dense area all at once?