With crawling traffic and drivers growing increasingly frustrated, roads in South Austin have become a daily headache. However, a new solution on the horizon could alleviate some of this congestion.
The City of Austin will be starting road work on Slaughter Lane in spring of 2025. One lane will be added to both sides of the road from either direction making the already four lane road into a six lane road. Changes will also be made to sidewalks and bike lanes. These lanes will be added to the section of Slaughter in between MoPac and Brodie Lane. Construction is predicted to be finished by summer of 2026 costing about $22.9 million according to city documents.
These changes to Slaughter will help to reduce congestion and crashes as well as make the road more accessible to cyclists and pedestrians. This is an important and beneficial addition that will help to keep the many people who frequently drive on Slaughter Lane safe.
According to KXAN, there have been well over 400 car accidents on Slaughter just from MoPac to Brodie in the span of five years. Due to Slaughter being a highly frequented roadway in Austin with many neighborhoods and stores along it, a high concentration of traffic is seen daily, especially around times when school and work get out. Adding two more lanes may not seem like much, but it will help to clear up traffic quicker, and make crashes less likely. According to Wired, the expansion of State Highway 161 in Dallas cut the time of rush hour in half.
The addition of these lanes will also bring a more accessible walkway at intersections such as Brodie Lane and Bowie High School. A continuous ADA-compliant sidewalk will be added to areas of Slaughter where there isn’t already. Since many students at Bowie walk to and from school, safety improvements can help to prevent accidents or dangerous pathways.
With a more accessible way to get to school, this could even lead more students to choose alternative forms of transportation, especially walking if they live nearby. This will help to protect the young citizens of Austin and work to prevent pedestrian related accidents.
In addition to the extra lanes and improved sidewalks, continuous bike lanes will be added to Slaughter Lane. Austin sees a large number of bicycle riders daily, so the addition of continuous bike lanes will ensure the safety of cyclists in Austin. Not only will this help to protect cyclists on such a busy road, but it could even influence more people to use a bike as a mode of transportation, lessening traffic. This will ensure that there are fewer bike related accidents along Slaughter and could help clear up some of the traffic.
Some citizens are concerned that there will be additional traffic due to construction, making congestion worse than it already is. While this issue is a common problem when it comes to road work, the end result will be a roadway that is even quicker and safer than before, benefitting all drivers. These changes will take time but they will contribute to the overall betterment of our roads.
Changes to improve roads in Austin should be continued throughout the city in order to maximize safety for both motorists and pedestrians. More projects such as improvements to I-35 and roads downtown should be prioritized especially since these areas experience a large amount of accidents. Citizens of Austin deserve to be protected and should not feel unsafe on the roads of their own city.
In order to promote safety among the citizens of Austin, these changes to Slaughter are important and vital for the betterment of our community. Additions such as extra lanes, continuous sidewalks, continuous bike lanes, and improved intersections will reduce injuries and accidents, improve traffic flow, and overall boost safety within Austin.
