Texas State Highway Loop 1
MoPac Expressway | ||||
Route information | ||||
Length | 25.698 mi[1] (41.357 km) | |||
Existed | 1967–present | |||
Major junctions | ||||
South end | SH 45 | |||
North end | SH 45 Toll | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United States | |||
State | Texas | |||
Counties | Travis, Williamson | |||
Highway system | ||||
|
Loop 1 is a freeway which provides access to the west side of Austin in the U.S. state of Texas. It is named Mopac Expressway (or, according to some highway signs, Mopac Boulevard) after the Missouri Pacific Railroad (or "MoPac"). Local residents almost always use the name "MoPac" rather than calling the road by its number,[2][3] which can cause much confusion, for few signs along the road use this name.[4][5]
The original section of the highway was built in the 1970s along the
History
Route designation
The first mention of Loop 1 in public record was in 1929. In 1944, the City of Austin Planning Commission (CMAC) proposed that the highway be built in parts of the under-utilized right of way owned by the MoPac Railroad. Thus, the highway was eventually given the nickname "MoPac" for its proximity to the railroad. The current Loop 1 was designated on October 27, 1967, from
Expressway construction (1969 to 2006)
This table contains the dates of the construction of segments of the road.[7][8][9]
From | To | Length (mi) |
Length (km) |
Project start |
Project completion |
Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
RM 2244 (Bee Cave Road) |
RM 2222 (Northland Road) |
5.4 | 8.7 | February 1969 | November 1975 | Loop 1 project started with construction of the 45th Street Interchange in February 1969. |
RM 2222 | US 183
|
4.6 | 7.4 | September 1977 | June 1981 | Northern terminus of Loop 1 completed, until July 1989 - with construction of the freeway extension to FM 734.
|
RM 2244 | Loop 360 | 1.9 | 3.1 | January 1979 | March 1982 | Southern terminus of Loop 1 completed, until October 1989 - with construction of the freeway extension to US 290.
|
Loop 360 | US 290 | 1.6 | 2.6 | October 1983 | October 1989 | Southern terminus of Loop 1 completed, until November 1990 - with construction of the roadway extension to Slaughter Lane. |
US 183 | FM 1325 (Burnet Road) and FM 734 (Parmer Lane) |
3.7 | 6.0 | January 1986 | July 1989 | Northern terminus of Loop 1 completed, until October 2006 - with construction of the freeway improvements between Steck Avenue and US 183, from March 1987 to June 1992. |
US 290
|
Slaughter Lane | 3.6 | 5.8 | January 1988 | November 1990 | Southern terminus of Loop 1 completed, until July 1991 - with construction of the roadway extension to La Crosse Avenue. |
Slaughter Lane | La Crosse Avenue | 1.0 | 1.6 | July 1989 | July 1991 | Southern terminus of Loop 1 completed, until May 1994 - with construction of the roadway extension to State Highway 45 .
|
La Crosse Avenue | SH 45 | 2.5 | 4.0 | November 1989 | May 1994 | Southern terminus of Loop 1 completed. |
FM 734 | SH 45 North/ Loop 1 Interchange |
4.0 | 6.4 | February 2003 | October 2006 | Construction on the SH 45 North Interchange began in September 2003. Northern terminus of Loop 1 completed. |
Route description
Loop 1's southern terminus is at the beginning of the
Loop 1 is designated a scenic roadway by the City of Austin.[11]
Major construction projects
Loop 1 Toll
North of Parmer Lane, Loop 1 continues as a limited-access
The
If and when
MoPac Improvement Project
Mopac Improvement Project | |
Location | Austin |
Existed | 2017–present |
Since 1994, TxDOT has proposed the addition of
MoPac Intersections Project
In 2013, CTRMA and TxDOT initiated an environmental study to analyze the best options to improve the MoPac intersections at Slaughter Lane and La Crosse Avenue. In December 2015, the study was completed with a Finding Of No Significant Impact for the project, which allowed it to move forward.[15] The selected design included replacing the at-grade intersection at Slaughter Lane with a diverging diamond interchange (DDI)[16] and the at-grade intersection at La Crosse Avenue with a diamond interchange. The project broke ground in January 2018 with Webber, LLC as the general contractor.
On August 10, 2018, the at-grade Slaughter Lane intersection was rerouted to the south as construction began on an overpass bridge on the original alignment.[17] The completed DDI opened to traffic on November 11, 2018, with final completion occurring in Spring 2019. The La Crosse Avenue intersection began construction in Fall 2018. On March 29, 2019, the La Crosse Avenue at-grade intersection was closed for reconstruction as a bridge.[18] The La Crosse Avenue bridge and intersection opened to traffic on April 16, 2020. The full project, including surrounding sound walls and retention ponds, was officially completed on December 16, 2020.[19][20]
MoPac South
In 2013, CTRMA and TxDOT initiated an environmental study of the MoPac corridor from Cesar Chavez Street to Slaughter Lane.[21] The environmental study identified the Express Lane(s) Alternative as the Recommended Build Alternative.[22] In October 2015, six proposals were presented to the public, each of which would add one of more express lanes; the "no-build" alternative was also presented.[23] In February 2016, the project was put on hold by a Save Our Springs lawsuit claiming the project had not complied with the National Environmental Policy Act's requirements for environmental studies.[24] The lawsuit was settled on July 18, 2018 with a ruling in favor of CTRMA by the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.[25] However, the project was further delayed by a state moratorium on toll projects receiving funding from State Propositions 1 and 7. TxDOT gave CTRMA preliminary approval to resume planning for MoPac South in August 2019.[26] In November 2021, the project was officially revitalized with a virtual open house, and it is currently in public planning phases with construction projected to start 2023.
Exit list
All exits are unnumbered.
County | Location | mi | km | Destinations | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Travis | Austin | 0.0 | 0.0 | SH 45 west | |
0.7 | 1.1 | South Bay Lane | At-grade intersection; dead end both directions, turnaround only | ||
1.5 | 2.4 | La Crosse Avenue | |||
2.3 | 3.7 | Slaughter Lane | Diverging Diamond Interchange | ||
2.9 | 4.7 | Davis Lane | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
4.7 | 7.6 | William Cannon Drive | |||
6.0 | 9.7 | Access to Baylor Scott & White Medical Center – Austin | |||
6.6 | 10.6 | Frontage Road | Southbound exit only | ||
7.5 | 12.1 | Loop 360 (Capital of Texas Highway) | Only one exit ramp travels from southbound Loop 1 to southbound Loop 360; all others are at-grade | ||
8.9 | 14.3 | Barton Skyway | |||
9.8 | 15.8 | RM 2244 (Bee Caves Road) / Wallingwood Drive – Rollingwood, West Lake Hills | |||
Roberta Crenshaw Bridge over the Colorado River | |||||
Loop 1 Express begins | South end of variable toll lanes | ||||
10.5 | 16.9 | Cesar Chavez Street / 5th Street / Lake Austin Boulevard | |||
11.2 | 18.0 | Enfield Road | |||
11.7 | 18.8 | Windsor Road | |||
12.3 | 19.8 | Westover Road / Northwood Road | |||
12.9 | 20.8 | 35th Street - Camp Mabry | Access to Seton Shoal Creek Hospital | ||
13.8 | 22.2 | 45th Street | |||
14.8 | 23.8 | RM 2222 (Northland Drive) | |||
Loop 1 Express | Access point for variable toll lanes | ||||
15.9 | 25.6 | Far West Boulevard | |||
16.6 | 26.7 | Anderson Lane / Spicewood Springs Road | Direct northbound exit and southbound entrance (southbound exit signed at Steck Avenue) | ||
17.1 | 27.5 | Steck Avenue | No direct northbound entrance | ||
17.3 | 27.8 | (no name) | Northbound exit only; replaced by northbound collector distributor road underneath Steck Avenue[27] | ||
18.0 | 29.0 | US 183 (Research Boulevard) | No direct southbound exit to US 183 north (signed at Capital of Texas Highway), access to Seton Northwest Hospital | ||
18.7 | 30.1 | Capital of Texas Highway | |||
19.1 | 30.7 | Braker Lane - Q2 Stadium | Direct southbound exit and northbound entrance (northbound exit signed at Capital of Texas Highway) | ||
20.5 | 33.0 | FM 1325 south (Burnet Road) / Duval Road | South end of FM 1325 overlap, access to North Austin Medical Center | ||
Loop 1 Express ends | North end of variable toll lanes; despite being signed as such, no direct access to FM 734 (Parmer Lane) exists | ||||
21.7 | 34.9 | FM 734 (Parmer Lane) | |||
22.4 | 36.0 | Scofield Ridge Parkway | Last free northbound exit before toll road begins; no direct southbound exit | ||
22.4 | 36.0 | Loop 1 ends Loop 1 Toll begins | Northern terminus of Loop 1 (Mopac Expressway); southern terminus of Loop 1 Toll | ||
23.1 | 37.2 | Howard station | |||
| 24.0 | 38.6 | Toll plaza | ||
Travis–Williamson county line | 24.5 | 39.4 | Shoreline Drive | No southbound exit | |
Williamson | 25.6 | 41.2 | SH 45 Toll to I-35 | ||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
|
See also
- U.S. Roads portal
References
- ^ a b Transportation Planning and Programming Division (n.d.). "State Highway Loop No. 1". Highway Designation Files. Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
- ^ "Confusing Road Names in Austin". Archived from the original on October 25, 2011. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ^ "Austin Slang - AOL Travel News". Archived from the original on January 20, 2012. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ^ "Decipher Austin streets | Always Austin". Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ^ "MoPac Expressway. Just wondering | Austin | Yelp". Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ProQuest 1515952796. (subscription required)
- ^ "Introduction: Mopac Improvement Project, April 2012" (PDF). Retrieved April 1, 2012.
- ^ "The MoPac 1 Project will study feasibility of managed lanes for Loop 1, and included in the Mobility 2030 Plan that was adopted by CAMPO in June 2005". Archived from the original on February 23, 2006. Retrieved June 1, 2005.
- ^ "What Native American tribe was most common in the area?". Texas Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on May 7, 2010. Retrieved January 24, 2010.
- ^ "Downtown Development and Capitol View Corridors" (PDF). Downtown Austin Commission. June 27, 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 15, 2017. Retrieved November 10, 2017.
- ^ "Code of Ordinances § 25-10-7". City of Austin. Retrieved October 28, 2022 – via Municode.
- ^ "MoPac Improvement Project". Archived from the original on December 30, 2010. Retrieved February 19, 2011.
- ^ Ham, Justin. "Finding" (PDF). MoPac Improvement Project. U.S. Dept. of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Texas Division. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 10, 2017. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
- ^ Jechow, Andy (August 25, 2016). "Weather, paving corrections push back North MoPac opening date". KXAN-TV. Archived from the original on August 29, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
- ^ "About MoPac Intersections". Archived from the original on February 19, 2018. Retrieved February 18, 2018.
- ^ "MoPac South: Diverging Diamond Interchange Simulation". Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority. April 16, 2015. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
- ^ Crown, Rosemond (June 11, 2018). "Construction to close Slaughter lane at MoPac for 6 months". KXAN. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
- ^ Cicale, Nicholas (March 29, 2019). "Detours for La Crosse Avenue at MoPac go into effect March 29". Community Impact Newspaper. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
- ^ Cicale, Nicholas (December 16, 2020). "MoPac projects at Slaughter Lane, La Crosse Ave. completed". impact. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
- ^ "MoPac Intersections". www.txdot.gov. Texas Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on September 27, 2018. Retrieved September 27, 2018. Note: This source incorrectly refers to interchanges as intersections.
- ^ "Project Overview | MoPac South Environmental Study". www.mopacsouth.com. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
- ^ "Environmental Study | MoPac South Environmental Study". www.mopacsouth.com. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
- ^ "Mobility authority unveils MoPac South options". Austin Monitor. October 22, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
- ^ "Group files lawsuit to stop South MoPac, SH 45 SW projects". KXAN Austin. February 25, 2016. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
- ^ Cicale, Nicholas (July 19, 2018). "Court rules on the side of CTRMA and TxDOT in lawsuit against South Austin transportation projects". impact. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
- ^ Ortiz, Edmond (November 7, 2019). "Austin: Mobility Authority Resumes Planning for New MoPac South Toll Roads". Virtual Builders Exchange. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
- ^ "Mopac Improvement: Steck Avenue Collector-Distributor Lane Construction". Archived from the original on June 9, 2016. Retrieved June 22, 2016.
- "Construction contract for Loop 1 extension awarded" (Press release). Texas Tollways. June 26, 2003.
- "Loop 1 History". Texas Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on May 7, 2010. Retrieved January 3, 2009.
- "Austin toll roads will open November 1" (PDF) (Press release). Central Texas Turnpike System. September 18, 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 20, 2007.