Austin's Deceptive Transit System Switchover
In 1985, the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority (CapMetro) was formed, following voter approval and a one-cent sales tax to fund it. The authority collected $40 million in tax revenue that year, a figure that would grow to approximately $400 million today.
CapMetro began exploring light rail in the 1990s, but public opposition and political pressure led to the dissolution of its all-citizen board and replacement with one composed of elected officials. Despite the budget soaring, public ridership did not. In 1990, total boardings reached 31.2 million, but thirty years later, commuter rides for buses and trains had declined to 30.5 million.
Austin's next big public transit push came in 2014, with a new referendum proposing a $1 billion bond for light rail and road improvements, which also failed, receiving just 43 percent of the vote. The controversy surrounding the Austin Transit Partnership (ATP), a local government corporation created by Proposition A, and the permanent 20 percent property tax increase it authorised, continued to grow.
In 2020, Austin voters approved Project Connect, a plan to modernize the city's public transit system. The original proposal for Project Connect was a $7.1 billion initiative, with $4.8 billion allocated to a 27-mile, multiline rail system. However, cost overruns and inflation drove the price tag sharply upward. As estimates neared $11 billion-twice the original amount-the ATP introduced five alternative routes to stay within the budget voters had approved.
The result, rolled out in 2023, was a significantly scaled-down plan: a rail-only budget of $5.1 billion; a reduction from multiple lines to just one; 9.8 miles of track instead of the original 27; 52,000 fewer projected daily riders; 15 light-rail stations rather than 26; and the elimination of the planned subway system.
The Texas legislature granted CapMetro the authority to hold a public vote on light rail by November 2000. The Austin Transit Partnership (ATP) is a local government corporation created by Proposition A, which receives the revenue annually to design and build Project Connect. Voters authorised a permanent 20 percent increase in the operations and maintenance portion of the property tax with the approval of Proposition A.
The controversy surrounding ATP centers on its ability to issue debt and the permanent 20 percent property tax increase. Critics argue that voters were misled about the nature of the tax increase, believing they were approving a bond, not a permanent tax hike. The class-action lawsuit seeking to block Project Connect is led by Cathy Cocco, who once supported the initiative.
Ellen Troxclair, an Austin Republican in the state House, introduced a bill that required the city to present the scaled-down plan to voters and again seek their approval, but the bill was blocked from reaching Governor Greg Abbott's desk. Scrutiny has intensified over the project's unique funding mechanism: a permanent, substantial tax increase.
State Senator Paul Bettencourt requested an opinion from State Attorney General Ken Paxton on the legality of the funding mechanism for Project Connect. Paxton issued an opinion stating that Austin could not legally bind future city councils to such an agreement, leading to revisions in the agreement between Austin and ATP.
The fight over ATP's funding mechanism and the modified Project Connect plan is ongoing, with legal challenges and political debates continuing. The light-rail project has diminished in scope, but the tax hike remains in place. Project Connect, proposed in 2020, was a significantly larger undertaking than its predecessors, including not only light rail but also upgrades to the city's commuter line; a new station near the soccer stadium; rapid bus lines; pickup services in mobility zones; and a 20-year, $300 million commitment to an 'anti-displacement fund' for the creation and preservation of affordable housing units for those living in areas affected by Project Connect's development.
