Environment Texas sues to stop I-35 expansion through Austin

Environment Texas joined Rethink35 and a diverse community coalition in filing a lawsuit on Friday against the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) over its plans to widen eight miles of I-35 from Ben White Blvd / SH71 to US 290 as part of the I-35 Capital Express Central Project. The lawsuit argues that TxDOT failed to take a hard look at environmental impacts related to human health, air quality, and water resources; failed to properly assess the project’s inequitable impacts of environmental justice populations; and did not seriously explore alternative highway designs to expansion. It also argues that TxDOT violated the law by failing to give the public an opportunity to comment on a major change to the project and failed to find a replacement for parkland at Waller Beach that the agency intends to seize.

TxDOT plans to widen I-35 through Austin from today’s 12 lanes to between 18 and 25 lanes, depending on location, more than doubling I-35’s number of lane miles through central Austin The project would displace over 100 homes and businesses; cause a decade’s worth of disruptive construction; bring 130,000 more vehicles through Austin every day; impact air and water quality; and worsen traffic safety and carbon emissions.