AUSTIN — It's been in the works for more than a year, but there is now a new plan in place to connect North Austin to downtown in a creative way.
Shoal Creek Trail in Central Austin is one of the city's oldest and most popular hike-and-bike trails. The City of Austin and Shoal Creek Conservancy have come up with a new plan called the "Vision to Action Plan." This would extend the 3.9 mile long trail to 13 miles, creating three segments that go right through Austin from Lady Bird Lake to north of the Domain.
This expansion is expected to be mostly privately funded and cost about $66-million. The plan would be completed in phases and eventually connect the Shoal Creek Trail to the Walnut Creek Trail, north of Highway 183. The new trail would be more accessible to people all around Austin and would also be more environmentally sound.
Once complete, the trail will become a part of a 30-mile continuous big loop of urban trails, traversing the city from Lady Bird Lake to Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park.
The Shoal Creek Conservancy said if the city council approves the plans, Austinites could start seeing changes within the next two years, and all of the projects are expected to be finished in the next 10 years.