City considers pedestrian bridge for Lady Bird Lake

Austin is inching toward a solution to the clogged sidewalks on Pleasant Valley Road atop Longhorn Dam, now more than five years in the making.

The city will host a public meeting Tuesday evening, where officials will outline a proposal to build a pedestrian and bicycle bridge across Lady Bird Lake near Longhorn Dam, before seeking community feedback. The crossing has long been identified as needing improvement, previously referred to in a 2013 Public Works Department memo as having "poor bicycle and pedestrian safety." The bridge features 4-foot-wide sidewalks on either side of the road that make for a tight squeeze as pedestrians, bicycles, scooters and strollers vie for space.

"The Longhorn Dam area of the hike and bike trail is probably the most critical need of the trail as a whole in terms of it being a pinch point and a safety hazard for trail users," said Heidi Anderson, executive director of the Trail Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works to protect and enhance the 10-mile Butler Hike and Bike Trail around Lady Bird Lake.

The Longhorn Dam crossing was first connected to the hike and bike trail in 2013, following the completion of the nearby mile-long boardwalk. Officials at the time told the American-Statesman they were anticipating a huge increase in pedestrian and bicycle traffic following the boardwalk's opening. Current numbers of pedestrian and bicycle crossings were not available Monday.

This isn't the city's first attempt at a solution to the narrow crossing. A 2013 proposal to reduce Pleasant Valley Road from four lanes to two lanes and install bike lanes on either side of the street was met with opposition, forcing the city to take a different approach.

City officials haven't released cost estimates or funding options for the proposed bridge, but Anderson said the Trail Foundation is interested in helping pay for the project once more details are released.

For regular users of the crossing, the changes need to happen sooner rather than later.

Christopher Stanton, who guides groups of child cyclists around the trails through his leadership with the Ghisallo Foundation, said the Longhorn Dam crossing always concerns him during his rides.

"I wouldn't say (the bridge) is unsafe because we wouldn't take kids across it if it was, but it is substandard," Stanton said. "It's narrower than a normal sidewalk, and you want to have an environment where a novice can make a mistake and it's not a big deal."

Most importantly, Stanton said, he wants the city to provide a timeline for the completion of the bridge, so the project doesn't drag on.

"I'm hoping that they have one or more preliminary designs that are high quality enough that kids can ride on it and we don't have to have a second thought," Stanton said. "This is something the city has discussed for a long time, and I just want to make sure they have a plan."