Rutland Drive, Longhorn Boulevard, Neils Thompson Drive

The City of Austin is implementing mobility and safety improvements along Rutland Drive from Burnet Road to North Lamar Boulevard, as well as Longhorn Boulevard and Neils Thompson Drive between Burnet Road and the Shoal Creek Trail’s headwaters. A community process in the Fall of 2024 informed these changes. Full details are below.

 Read the feedback report  for a summary of all feedback received and a  stakeholder email update  for anticipated next steps.

 View a detailed drawing of the improvements. 

Rutland Drive serves as an important east-west connector for people walking, bicycling, driving and using public transportation. Currently, Rutland Drive provides one to two motor vehicle lanes in each direction, with center turn lanes in various sections. It provides sidewalks on both sides of the roadway but lacks a bicycle facility throughout the roadway. Rutland Drive is part of the City’s  High-Injury Network , and the corridor includes several intersections, including Burnet Road, Parkfield Drive, Mearns Meadow Boulevard, and North Lamar Boulevard, which are among the top crash intersections citywide. Rutland Drive, Burnet Road, Longhorn Boulevard and Neils Thompson Drive also provide helpful connectivity for the urban trails network, linking from Shoal Creek Trail at the southern end of Neils Thompson Drive to points throughout North Central Austin. This project helps to connect the  Big Loop , which envisions connecting the Butler Trail, Southern and Northern Walnut Creek Trails and the Shoal Creek Trail.

Between fall 2018 and fall 2023, over 620 crashes were reported on Rutland Drive between Burnet Road and North Lamar Boulevard. On average, a crash happened every three days along this section of Rutland Drive. These crashes resulted in two deaths, eight serious injuries, and over 100 other injuries, totaling $60 million in  comprehensive crash costs  over five years.

The goal of this project is to improve safety for everyone who uses these streets as well as connectivity and comfort to and from destinations along and across these streets. The project uniquely provides connectivity to and from the Shoal Creek Trail, extending reach to points north, including Q2 Stadium, the Northern Walnut Creek Trail and many North Austin neighborhoods. Pedestrian and bicycle facilities will provide connectivity along and across Rutland Drive between the planned and funded Burnet Road corridor improvements and North Lamar Boulevard.

The improvements are designed to address existing crash patterns along Rutland Drive. High-risk speeding (i.e., 10 MPH over the posted speed limit) is expected to decrease, resulting in an increase in safety for all roadway users. The improvements are expected to reduce reoccurring crash patterns, improve yielding and visibility, and establish physical separation for people walking, bicycling and using electric scooters or other assisted mobility devices from motor vehicles.

The project will install urban trails and protected bike lanes, as well as intersection safety improvements and new or enhanced pedestrian crossings throughout the corridor. In order to make space for these improvements, some street space along Neils Thompson Drive, Longhorn Boulevard, and Rutland Drive will be repurposed. Motor vehicle travel times are not expected to change since multiple lanes will remain at the eastbound and westbound approaches to Burnet Road and the eastbound approach to North Lamar Boulevard.

Urban Trails expand outdoor recreational options and make it easier for people of all abilities to get outside, exercise, and connect with nature and their community right in their neighborhood. This project will install a high-quality urban trail with separate bike and pedestrian facilities.

Currently, Rutland Drive has no bike lanes, creating unsafe conditions for cyclists on the road and the sidewalk, contributing to the high-injury roadway designation. The new bike lanes will be protected with a combination of flexible posts and low rubber curbs. This configuration will enable trash collection and mail service to continue to operate as it does now, as well as provide separation and visibility for people on bicycles or scooters and people driving.

Pedestrian crossing islands are currently being planned throughout the project limits to provide shorter, safer crossings, improve driver yielding and help manage motor vehicle speeds. While the islands would initially be installed using temporary materials, they would eventually all be built in concrete.

Planned changes at key intersections will enhance safety movements for all users. These improvements will include lane reconfigurations, the addition of physical protection for more vulnerable users, and a planned roundabout.

Planned urban trail connection locations:

• Neils Thompson Drive
• Longhorn Boulevard

This new urban trail will create a direct route from the Shoal Creek Trail to the upcoming Burnet Road shared-use path to be built as part of the Burnet Road Corridor Project, making future connections to other trail systems possible, including the Northern Walnut Creek Trail and the Red Line Trail. This vital connection also grants easy access between the 803 Rapid Bus line directly to the Shoal Creek Trail via the Rutland Rapid Station on Burnet Road.

Planned protected bike lane configuration:

Planned pedestrian crossing island Locations:

• Mc Kalla Place
• Metropolitan Avenue
• Between Metric Boulevard and Golden Meadow Drive
• Golden Meadow Drive
• Rutland Village

At Burnet Road, a two-way bikeway along the northern curb will connect the future Burnet Road shared-use path to Mc Kalla Place. This bikeway is part of the connection between the Shoal Creek Trail, Red Line Trail and Northern Walnut Creek. It will provide a direct and intuitive bike connection to a future shared-use path on Mc Kalla Place and to Q2 Stadium and other destinations.

Three-quarter-protected intersections will be installed on the south and east sides. This new configuration will result in slower vehicle turning speeds and increased visibility of bicycles and pedestrians.

Closure of the right-turn slip lane will create slower vehicle speeds and improve vehicle movement predictability, resulting in safer bike lanes and vehicle movements for all users. Current funding provides for an initial paint-and-post-treatment, as shown in Option A. However, if funding can be identified, there are completed designs for vegetating the area, including a potential rain garden to mitigate water runoff and create neighborhood placemaking, as shown in Option B.

Planned protected bike lane configuration:

Planned pedestrian crossing island locations:

• Ledgewood Avenue
• Near Villas del Sol and Meadows Edge Apartments
• 1622 Rutland Drive

The City's Vision Zero Program is utilizing federal grant funding from the Safe Streets and Roads for All grant program to design and install a roundabout at Rutland Drive and Parkfield Drive. Compared with traditional signalized intersections, roundabouts can improve safety in the following ways:

• Slower speeds: more time for all users to react to each other and reduced potential of injury when a crash does occur.
• Fewer conflict points and reduced conflict severity.
• Shorter crossing distances and the removal of multiple-threat conflicts for pedestrians and bicyclists using the marked crossings. Refuge islands allow for crossing one direction of traffic at a time.

Vision Zero data shows that between 2019 and 2023, 61% of total crashes at this intersection involved right-angle or left-turn crashes, which are crash types that roundabouts are particularly effective in addressing. National research indicates 26% fewer total crashes are expected for a single-lane roundabout compared to a traffic signal alternative, and 55% fewer fatal and injury crashes are anticipated for a single-lane roundabout compared to a traffic signal.

Roundabouts can also reduce motor vehicle delays and maintain traffic flow more effectively than traffic signals, with the added benefit of reduced emissions and wasted fuel. The Vision Zero team worked with traffic engineering consultants to model traffic operations of the current signalized intersection compared with the proposed roundabout and found that the roundabout is expected to result in a lower average delay per vehicle than a traffic signal during peak hours. The modeling shows that the roundabout reduces average vehicle delay by approximately 55% in the morning peak period and 62% in the evening peak period.

Design of the roundabout is currently underway with expected construction in 2026.

Planned protected bike lane configuration:

The bike lanes from Parkfield Drive to North Lamar Boulevard will provide safer access to those utilizing the 801 Rapid Bus line to connect those who live and work as far south as South Congress.

Along Mearns Meadows Boulevard through the Rutland Drive and Rundberg Lane intersections, dedicated left turn lanes, a single through lane, and protected bike lanes will be installed at all sides of the intersection to improve safety for all roadway users. At Mearns Meadows Boulevard, the Vision Zero Program is planning to install a protected intersection to provide a greater degree of physical protection between motor vehicles and vulnerable road users. The intersection will also include the addition of left turn lanes and traffic signal upgrades to reduce conflicts, providing more predictable movements.

Feedback from people who use Rutland Drive, the streets the trail around it will be key to developing a project plan that best reflects the needs of the community.

We greatly appreciate those who shared feedback with us through the online survey and those who attended our community pop-up event on September 28, 2024. Community feedback was welcomed through October 6, 2024, and is being analyzed. Results will be posted here once ready.

Email mobilitybonds@austintexas.gov or join the mailing list for project updates.

 ATX WalkBikeRoll   

 Bikeways 

 Urban Trails 

 Vision Zero   

 Austin Strategic Mobility Plan