Case study praises the structure and organization of Project Connect at an early stage

A new report from an advocacy group that supports public transit projects nationwide praises Austin’s Project Connect initiative, but it is still about 10 years away from achieving its goal of building a light rail system across the city.

On Tuesday, Los Angeles-based group Accelerator for America Action released a “living case study” that examines several components of Project Connect’s organization. The document, which will be updated every six to 12 months, focuses in particular on the creation of the Austin Transit Partnership, which will oversee planning and construction of the light rail line, expanding bus service and a range of land-use and development goals.

The creation of ATP after voters approved the transit plan in 2020 to handle administration, staffing, financing and other parts of the project was highlighted as a new best practice that other cities across the country could emulate.

Mary Ellen Wiederwohl, president and CEO of Accelerator for America Action, said the use of a new centralized project delivery unit could prevent existing transit agencies or city transportation departments from being overwhelmed in managing the design, procurement and construction phases of major projects.

“When you look at how transit agencies are built and operated, building a new transit system is very different than operating a transit system on a day-to-day basis. To ask an already overburdened transit agency in any community to then say, ‘Oh, now you’re going to be an expert in construction,’ is just a little too much,” she said. “Having an agency like ATP that can focus on build-out and the many important and detailed tasks associated with building the system, while the Cap Metro transit agency can continue to focus on operational excellence every day … that’s the best practice that we’re emphasizing.”

The case study also praised the citizen engagement and land use considerations the city and ATP have implemented over the past few years. Of particular note are the city’s actions to promote density and affordability near transportation corridors. On the subject of permitting, it noted that giving the city final decision-making authority over required permits could create issues with planning and overall efficiency. And while ATP’s procurement strategies are still in the very early stages, the case study praised the organization’s stated preference for smaller contracts with a variety of suppliers and vendors over large “mega-contracts” that can be difficult to manage.

Wiederwohl said land-use practices will be especially important as ATP and related parties continue to prepare proposals for the billions of dollars in federal transportation funding that will be essential to delivering the system at the scale promised to voters.

“Austin has been very careful throughout the process, especially with ATP, to make sure that what they do and how they do it meets the requirements of the Federal Transit Administration, especially with regard to land use,” she said.

“It may not be the first thing you think of, but it’s something that goes into the decision-making process and plays a role in evaluating the money you get from the federal government. Because they want to make sure that when you build these new lines – particularly the rail lines – that you encourage denser, transit-oriented development around the lines,” she said.

As parts of Project Connect come online – including the opening of McKalla Station and the upcoming expansion of bus service to East Austin – local transit advocates hope citizens will use it more often. At the same time, the implementation of land-use changes is expected to increase the number of homes near new transportation corridors.

Bill McCamley, executive director of the education and engagement group Transit Forward, said the case study could serve as initial encouragement to transit workers that the city is being viewed nationally as taking the right approach to an ambitious, long-term infrastructure project.

“If you’re an employee and you know that this research is out there and that your management is committed to holding that data accountable, I think that can have a really positive effect on your day-to-day operations,” he said. “It can be really easy to do things the way they’ve always been done because it’s simple and easy to understand. One of the great benefits of this process is that it keeps in mind, ‘We need to make sure we’re trying to keep doing things right here.'”

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