Like many Austinites, after New Year s Day, Lamar Boulevard is set to go on a diet.
But unlike many Austinites, the road will follow through on its slimming effort. Its so-called road diet will manifest itself in the first phase of safety improvements that will in some stretches permanently remove lanes from South Lamar Boulevard.
The jargon for what is planned for Lamar Boulevard an effort to place greater emphasis on alternative modes of transportation through more robust sidewalks and bike lanes is often referred as a road diet.
With a $6.9 million contract recently approved by the Austin City Council, the first phase of South Lamar Boulevard s diet is expected to begin in January or February. The renovation will focus on the stretch of road between Riverside Drive and Barton Springs Road, just south of Lady Bird Lake.