Shoal Creek, flowing roughly 11 miles from its headwaters north of Highway 183 to Lady Bird Lake, is one of the two major creeks running through downtown Austin. That fact alone makes it relevant to any conversation about the peaceful coexistence of the natural and built environments in the urban core, but it doesn’t seem…
bicycles
Lockless and Flockless: The State of Austin’s Dockless Vehicle Pilot Program
If you hadn’t heard, Austin has a newfangled pilot program for dockless bikes and scooters. This is awesome because scooters are awesome and bikes are awesome, and if you disagree, I’ll leave you in my scooter dust, at no more than 15 miles per hour. via GIPHY So, now that we’re a month into the city’s new dockless regulations, let’s…
Mapping the Trail Foundation’s 15 Plans to Improve Austin’s Hike-and-Bike Trail
It’s been 15 years since the Trail Foundation took over the upkeep and improvement of Austin’s iconic Hike-and-Bike trail, and to celebrate, the nonprofit recently announced 15 planned improvement projects to be completed along the 10-mile path over the next five years. Two of the projects are general improvements for the entire thing — updated signage for better wayfinding and environmental restoration intended…
Work Begins on Lady Bird Lake Trail Bridge Under Congress Avenue
The Trail Foundation, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to the upkeep of the city’s Hike and Bike Trail, celebrated a groundbreaking ceremony last night commemorating the start of construction on a new pedestrian and bicycle bridge for the stretch of the trail underneath the north end of the Congress Avenue Bridge. According to the foundation, the bridge is planned…
A History of Austin’s Famous Hike and Bike Trail, Which Wasn’t Always Green
It’s hard to imagine Austin without its crown — the 10-mile trail that encircles much of Lady Bird Lake in the heart of the city. Officially known as the Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail, the path offers a natural respite in Austin’s increasingly concrete core, serving the fitness and commuting needs of…
Can Austin’s Bike-Sharing Go Dockless Without the Entire City Losing Its Mind?
Earlier this month, a former mayor of San Luis Obispo, California, wrote a letter to the editor of that town’s newspaper in which he felt it perfectly acceptable and cool to describe a proposed bikeway as a “gigantic urban rape.” “Yes, rape!” Ken Schwartz wrote before graciously elaborating, “No other word would be proper. The rape will not…