Orange Line (CapMetro)

The Orange Line is a proposed north-south light rail line that will serve the central spine of Austin from North Lamar to Stassney Lane. It is in the planning stages as a part of CapMetro's Project Connect. It is estimated to begin revenue service as early as 2029.^[1][2]

Orange Line
Overview
Status	In planning
Locale	Austin, Texas
Termini	North Lamar Transit Center (future extension to Tech Ridge) Stassney (future extension to Slaughter)
Stations	15
Service
Type	Light rail
System	CapMetro Rail
Operator(s)	Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority
History
Planned opening	2029
Technical
Line length	20 mi (32 km)
Route diagram Legend North Lamar Transit Center US 183 Future extension Phase I Priority Extension      Red Line to Leander Crestview Koenig 45th Street Phase I Priority Extension Phase I 38th Street 29th Street UT 15th Street Cesar Chavez      Red Line to Leander      Green Line to Colony Park Lady Bird Lake Waterfront      Blue Line to Yellow Jacket SoCo Oltorf Phase I Priority Extension Future extension St. Edward's US 290 / SH 71 South Congress Transit Center Stassney This diagram: view talk edit

History

A contract for preliminary engineering work along the line was approved on March 20, 2019.^[3] In 2020, the planned route was truncated in length to reduce construction costs, with bus bridges providing connectivity through the rest of the corridor.^[4] Potential future phases may extend the line north to Tech Ridge and south to Slaughter as initially envisioned — those alignments are expected to be included in National Environmental Policy Act processing to allow for conversion to light rail in the future.^[5]

Route

The Orange Line is 20 miles (32 km) long and will run in its own dedicated transitway, including the Downtown Transit Tunnel, 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 CapMetro Rapid 801 or a similar alignment. It is planned to run along The Drag.^[6]

Future extensions to the line would feature stations at Tech Ridge, Parmer, Braker, Rundberg, William Cannon, and Slaughter.

Stations

 

North Lamar Transit Center, the planned northern terminus of the line, seen in 2008

Stations are listed north to south.^[3][7][8]

Station name	Parking	Rail connections	Bus connections	Nearby points of interest
North Lamar Transit Center	Yes	Blue Line	CapMetro Rapid 801 CapMetro Bus 1, 323, 350, 383	Anderson Square Shopping Center
Crestview	No	Red Line   Blue Line	CapMetro Rapid 801 CapMetro Bus 1, 7, 300, 324, 350	Crestview station, Midtown Commons, Texas DPS Credit Union, Black Star Co-op
Koenig		Blue Line	CapMetro Rapid 801 CapMetro Buss 1, 337	Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas Highway Patrol, McCallum High School
Triangle	Yes	Blue Line	CapMetro Rapid 801 CapMetro Bus 1, 345, 656, 990	Hyde Park, The Triangle, Texas Facilities Commission, UT Intramural Fields, UT Microfarm, The Triangle Park
Hyde Park		Blue Line	CapMetro Rapid 801, 803 CapMetro Bus 1, 3, 19, 335	Hyde Park, Austin State Hospital, Central Market, Heart Hospital of Austin
Hemphill Park		Blue Line	CapMetro Bus 1, 3, 19, 642	University of Texas at Austin, Phi Gamma Delta, Scottish Rite Dormitory
UT/West Mall		Blue Line	CapMetro Rapid 801, 803 CapMetro Bus 1, 3, 19, 20, 105, 640, 982, 990	University of Texas at Austin, Peter T. Flawn Academic Center, Goldsmith Hall, Sutton Hall, Battle Hall, Parlin Hall, Rainey Hall, Harry Ransom Center
Government Center / Capitol West		Blue Line	CapMetro Rapid 801, 803 CapMetro Bus 1, 3, 19, 20, 105, 985	Wooldridge Square Park, Austin Public Library, Travis County Civil Courthouse, Texas State Capitol, Travis County Adult Probation, Texas Alliance of Child and Family Services
Republic Square		Blue Line	CapMetro Rapid 801, 803, Gold Line CapMetro Bus 105, 111, 171, 980, 981, 985	City Hall, Republic Square, Sixth Street, Texas State Board of Nursing, United States Federal Court
Auditorium Shores			CapMetro Rapid 801, Gold Line CapMetro Bus 1, 7, 20, 142, 935	Auditorium Shores, Lady Bird Lake, Long Center for the Performing Arts
SoCo			CapMetro Rapid 801, Gold Line CapMetro Bus 1	South Congress, Texas School for the Deaf
Oltorf			CapMetro Rapid 801, Gold Line CapMetro Bus 1, 300	South Congress H-E-B, St. Ignatius Martyr School, William B. Travis High School
St. Edward's			CapMetro Rapid 801, Gold Line CapMetro Bus 1	Saint Edward's University
South Congress Transit Center	Yes		CapMetro Rapid 801, Gold Line CapMetro Bus 1, 310, 315	St David's South Hospital, St. Elmo District
Stassney			CapMetro Rapid 801, Gold Line CapMetro Bus 1, 311	Williamson Creek Greenbelt

References

1. Sanders, Austin (April 26, 2022). "What Kind of Rail Bridge Will Austin Build Across Lady Bird Lake?". Austin Chronicle. Retrieved July 21, 2022.
2. Ionescu, Diana (July 8, 2022). "A Look at Austin's Proposed Subway Stations". Planetizen. Retrieved July 21, 2022.
3. Cicale, Nicholas (March 25, 2019). "Capital Metro approves contract for Orange Line preliminary engineering work". Community Impact. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
4. Willson, Bill (July 23, 2020). "Part of Cap Metro's show-stopping transit plan gets the hook". RT&S. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
5. Clark-Madison, Mike (September 25, 2020). "From Light Rail to a Downtown Tunnel: The Parts of Project Connect". Austin Chronicle. Retrieved November 5, 2020.
6. Aleman, Christian (December 9, 2021). "New Austin light-rail project could remove cars from The Drag". KVUE. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
7. "Metro Project Connect Initial Investment System Plan" (PDF). July 30, 2020. Retrieved November 5, 2020.
8. Marloff, Sarah (April 12, 2019). "Project Connect Unveils Cap Metro's Orange Line". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved November 4, 2020.

External links

• Map and fact sheet A
• Fact sheet B
• Project Connect (official website)