AUSTIN, Texas — After a traffic study prompted by the concerns of neighbors in one North Austin community, the City's traffic engineer is recommending the Austin City Council approve the permanent removal of a somewhat controversial gate.
The gate in question currently sits at Easy Wind Drive and Morrow Street, separating the Crestview and Crestview Station neighborhoods.
The Austin Transportation Department (ATD) completed an engineering investigation regarding the gate by collecting 24-hour traffic speed and volume data on Morrow Street, Easy Wind Drive and Banyon Street. Data collection began in August 2021, with the gate being closed to capture baseline conditions. The department also collected data in October and November with the gate opened to compare results between both scenarios.
Based on the data, officials found that traffic volumes generally increased immediately after the gate opened but leveled off after this initial increase.
"We found that basically traveling speeds were not impacted by opening the gate. Most drivers were at or below the posted speed limit before the gate was opened and even after the game was opened," said Eric Bollich, managing engineer for ATD. "We didn't determine that there was an impact to safety or mobility in terms of traffic."
According to a City memo, "The speed data indicates that the prevailing speeds (85th percentile) were not impacted by the increased volumes, and drivers continued to travel within reasonable conformance of the posted 25 mph speed limits."
The memo also states that the department installed a sidewalk last year on the north side of Morrow Street from North Lamar Boulevard to Watson Street.
"The recorded speeds, along with the existing pedestrian sidewalk, do not present a notable safety concern," the memo states. "Existing speed cushions on Morrow Street also serve to lower speeds on the street and improve safety."
Neighbors who pushed for the gate's removal are thrilled with the outcome.
"It's a victory not only for having a connected community and safety most importantly, but also it's a reminder that good government happens and good government can work," said Kate Sherwood, who has lived on both sides of the gate. "They are looking at the growth of Austin overall. And you can't stop people from coming in. You can keep them safe on the road and on the sidewalks when they do."
Council Member Leslie Pool, whose district contains the gate, released the following statement on Thursday:
"I appreciate the work of our City transportation staff in looking at this change to Easy Wind for Crestview neighbors. I’m pleased to see that they found no significant difference in traffic with the gate open, and point to the benefits of greater connectivity and access for public safety services within Crestview Station. I also want to thank our neighborhoods for engaging with us and with our City staff as we explored this change. We now move into the next phase of removal, and I’m exploring those steps with our City staff as well."
The Austin City Council will now have to approve a zoning change to have the gate permanently removed, which could take months. In the meantime, the Austin Transportation Department told KVUE the gate will remain open.
Some neighbors discussed plans of asking the City to assist with the permanent removal when that happens, Sherwood said.
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