# Blue Line (CapMetro)

The Blue Line is a planned light rail line for connecting Austin–Bergstrom International Airport with downtown Austin, Texas. It is still in the planning stages as a part of CapMetro's Project Connect. It is estimated to begin revenue service as early as 2029.

## History

Austin's 2013 East Riverside Corridor Plan called for high-capacity transit to be installed along East Riverside Drive. This became part of the original Blue Line, which failed to find support in 2014 and was shelved. The Gold Line was formed from a segment of this original proposal, and is expected to be built as a separate bus rapid transit line.
In 2018, CapMetro announced a new long-range planning project entitled Project Connect that outlines several major transit corridors consisting of commuter rail, light rail, and bus rapid transit. The Blue Line corridor will include a transit pathway for a light rail or bus rapid transit line running on the west side of Downtown Austin to Austin–Bergstrom International Airport in southeast Austin. The line was included as part of the Project Connect referendum during the 2020 election.

## Proposed route

A new bridge over Lady Bird Lake is planned to carry the line into the Downtown Transit Tunnel.
Stations are listed south to north, from Austin–Bergstrom International Airport to the North Lamar Transit Center:
| Station | Parking | Rail connections | Bus connections | Nearby points of interest |
| Airport | Yes | | CapMetro Bus 20 | Austin–Bergstrom International Airport |
| Metrocenter | No | | CapMetro Bus 271 | Austin Airport Hotels |
| Montopolis | No | | CapMetro Bus 20 | Montopolis Park, Tokyo Electron |
| Faro | No | | CapMetro Bus 20, 310 | Austin Public Library, Riverside Golf Course |
| Riverside | Yes | | CapMetro Bus 20, 300, 483 | Park Greene Shopping Center |
| Lakeshore | Yes | | CapMetro Bus 7, 20, 483 | Oracle Corporation |
| Travis Heights | No | | CapMetro Bus 7, 20, 483, 935, 987 | Austin Housing Authority, Norwood Park |
| Waterfront | No | | CapMetro Bus 7, 20, 483 | South Congress, Texas Department of Transportation, Austin American-Statesman, Lady Bird Lake |
| Rainey/MACC | No | | CapMetro Bus 17 | Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center |
| Convention Center/Brush Square | No | Red Line | CapMetro Bus 451 CapMetro Rapid Gold Line | Austin Convention Center, Downtown Austin, Rainey Street |
| Congress Avenue | No | | |
| Republic Square | No | Orange Line | CapMetro Rapid 801, 803, Gold Line CapMetro Bus 105, 111, 171, 980, 981, 985 | Republic Square, Sixth Street, Texas State Board of Nursing, United States Federal Court |
| Government Center / Capitol West | No | Orange Line | CapMetro Rapid 801, 803 CapMetro Bus 1, 3, 19, 20, 105, 985 | Wooldridge Square Park, Austin Public Library, Travis County Civil Courthouse. Texas State Capitol, Travis County Adult Probation, Texas Alliance of Child and Family Services |
| UT/West Mall | No | Orange Line | CapMetro Rapid 801, 803 CapMetro Bus 1, 3, 19, 20, 105, 640, 982, 990 | University of Texas at Austin, Peter T. Flawn Academic Center, Goldsmith Hall, Sutton Hall, Battle Hall, Parlin Hall, Rainey Hall, Harry Ransom Center, West Campus |
| Hemphill Park | No | Orange Line | CapMetro Bus 1, 3, 19, 642 | University of Texas at Austin, Phi Gamma Delta, Scottish Rite Dormitory |
| Hyde Park | No | Orange Line | CapMetro Rapid 801, 803 CapMetro Bus 1, 3, 19, 335 | Hyde Park, Austin State Hospital, Central Market, Heart Hospital of Austin |
| Triangle | Yes | Orange Line | CapMetro Rapid 801 CapMetro Bus 1, 345, 656, 990 | Hyde Park, The Triangle, Texas Facilities Commission, UT Intramural Fields, UT Microfarm, The Triangle Park |
| Koenig | No | Orange Line | CapMetro Rapid 801 CapMetro Bus 1, 337 | Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas Highway Patrol, McCallum High School |
| Crestview | No | Red Line Orange Line | CapMetro Rapid 801 CapMetro Bus 1, 7, 300, 324, 350 | Crestview station, Midtown Commons, Texas DPS Credit Union, Black Star Co-op |
| North Lamar Transit Center | Yes | Orange Line | CapMetro Rapid 801 CapMetro Bus 1, 323, 350, 383 | Anderson Square Shopping Center |