Today, the Capital Metro Red Line Metro Rail began running, and in addition to representing a day some of us thought would never come, it also means cyclists need to avoid a section of the Lance Armstrong Bikeway on 4th Street for the next couple months. The section of bikeway on 4th between Red River and IH 35 is currently closed while a bridge is being constructed over Waller Creek. This closure is forcing cyclists to cross rail tracks in a potentially dangerous way. Indeed, Keith Byrd from Social Cycling ATX told me of a friend who fell and was hospitalized in this section of the LAB just last week.

Please avoid this area with the recommended detour here from city staff:

The barricades are a safety precaution for cyclists.  Prior to the installation of the barricades, cyclists were riding on the rail line, compromising their safety, and ignoring the DETOUR sign placed at Red River and 4th Street.  The impetus for the additional barricades in this location was brought about by the pending arrival of the CapMetro commuter rail line.  If cyclists are riding between the rails, they could potentially be in conflict with the train.  We would like to discourage this activity as much as possible, and encourage cyclists to use 5th Street as an alternative until the bridge over Waller Creek is installed and crossing the rail line by bicycle will no longer be necessary.

Cyclists heading eastbound on 4th Street should take a left-hand turn (northbound) on Trinity and continue eastbound on 5th Street.

This Capital Metro bridge project, which was supposed to be started in February, is now slated to be started in May. We’ll let you know when the route opens again.

Related posts:

1. Route Update: Bridge over Waller Creek to be temporarily closed until Apr 29 ...
2. Shoal Creek Trail Closed at 3rd Street until Friday ...
3. November Update from City of Austin on bike infrastructure improvements ...
4. MetroRail to limit number of bikes to 8 per train ...
5. City updates bike boulevard, drops Nueces Street from the name ...