Category Archives: Mobility

Mobility refers to land use as it concerns mobility, all transportation modes including roads, aviation, public transit, pedestrian programs, bicycle programs, ground transportation, taxicab regulation, Lone Star Rail, core transit corridors, and related matters.

“Austin Don’t Rush” on May 11

Austin_Dont_Rush_Logo%5b2%5dToday Mayor Steve Adler challenged Austin commuters to find a way to work that avoided rush hour traffic on May 11. This is an attempt to recreate the traffic flow when people stayed home because the President came to town for SXSW, and Austin saw traffic times drop by half on MoPac and by about half that much on our downtown streets.

“Last time I asked you to work from home,” said Mayor Adler. “This time I’m just saying, Austin don’t rush. Figure out a different work schedule. Take the bus or the train. If you can, ride your bike into work. We did it for the President. We can do it for us. If each of us does a little, we can all do a lot.”

To relieve traffic congestion, the Mayor is asking Austinites to do anything other than drive by themselves—if possible—during morning and afternoon rush hours on May 11. Continue reading →

Did “Work From Home Friday” Work? Here are the stats:

When the President announced that he, along with 250,000 of his closest friends were visiting Austin on the first day of South By Southwest, people were predicting “Carmageddon.” In truth, on a regular day, traffic in Austin is pretty bad. We all know that I-35 is the most congested road in Texas. Add a presidential motorcade and a rolling blockade onto the already blocked-off streets for SXSW, and you’d have been excused for anticipating disaster. Screen Shot 2016-04-25 at 12.47.31 PM

But the Mayor had a different plan. He asked everyone who could to work from home. It was that simple. It was just an idea, a suggestion for those with the flexibility and inclination to take it. And perhaps if Adam Hammonds at KEYE hadn’t been interested in the idea, it might not have worked. But Hammonds did an interview with the Mayor about this that was shared more than 53,000 times on the Internet. The word spread. AISD and the City of Austin decided to let out at noon. Downtown business encouraged their employees to work from home. We expected the worst, so everyone did their best to avoid driving during rush hour.

If you were anywhere near Austin that day, you probably remember how great it worked. Continue reading →