The Austin City Council gave preliminary approval for zoning within half-mile radius around future CapMetro commuter rail stations within the city. Final approval is expected within a few weeks.
Volume 2, Issue 1 of the All Systems Go newsletter has been released. Fred Gilliams’ monthly update reports on the progress of CapMetro’s commuter rail line.
The first rail station in Capital Metro’s 32-mile commuter rail route has opened in Leander. The rail line will open in 2008. The city of Leander has opened its rail stop and park & ride, which will allow commuters to park at the station before boarding the train.
Austin Business Journal: Leander opens commuter rail station
The first of Capital Metro’s six Swiss-made rail cars has finished assembly and will arrive in Austin this fall for local track testing. Capital Metro’s commuter rail service is scheduled to begin in late 2008.
Austin American-Statesman transportation columnist Ben Wear did the math, and discovers that the Leander-to-downtown commuter rail route is quite an expensive ride.
The five rail cars (at $5 million a pop) with a capacity of 200 running five routes from Leander at 30-minute intervals in the morning and evening means 1,000 commuters at a cost of $90 million - and that is full capacity. Ouch.
Ding Ding Goes the Commuter Train - Austin American-Statesman