U.S. 290 lanes to open; tolls begin in January
Westbound lanes and two more flyovers of the new U.S. 290 East tollway, known as the Manor Expressway, will open overnight and be ready for traffic before rush hour Friday, the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority says. Tolls on the four flyovers and the 1.5 miles of new express lanes, which will allow drivers to get from U.S. 183 to past Springdale Road without hitting a traffic signal, will begin Jan. 5, according to the agency. The charges for those with an electronic toll tag will be 50 cents for a trip on a flyover, and another 50 cents for using the express lanes.
Those who pay by mail will pay 33 percent more. There will be no cash booths.
The eastbound lanes past Springdale and two of the four flyovers connecting U.S. 290 to U.S. 183 opened in late November. The section opening now is the first phase of a 6.2-mile, $426 million tollway project that will extend the six-lane tollway from U.S. 183 to past Parmer Lane, just west of Manor. The project should be completed sometime in 2014, officials have said.
About 400 new and existing Capital Metro bus stops will receive improvements over the next five years to meet requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The improvements are being completed through a Capital Metro partnership with the city of Austin Public Works Department. The estimated cost ranges from $3,000 to $20,000 for each stop. Capital Metro will reimburse the city monthly for the completed work.
Officials said Capital Metro’s approximately 2,900 bus stops met the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act when they were constructed, but the agency has been upgrading stops to meet the act’s latest standards.
Stops scheduled for improvement include those on Airport Boulevard, Burnet Road and Stassney Lane.
The Pflugerville Animal Shelter, 1600 Waterbrook Drive, is reducing its adoption fees for dogs to $25 until Dec. 31. The reduction in price is made possible by the Pflugerville Pfurry Pfriends offering to put $65 towards all dog adoptions during this period.
For more information go to www.pflugervilletx.gov/ adoptme.
The Manor school district is holding a community meeting seeking input from current or future parents of the district’s Day Care Center students on the characteristics they want in a new Day Care Center coordinator.
The meeting is scheduled from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday in the Cafeteria at Manor Excel Academy, 600 E. Parsons St.
The Manor school district is lending some holiday help to 104 kindergarten and firstgrade students within the district as part of the 18th annual Adopt-A-Kid program.
The district matches elementary school students with a class at one of the high school campuses, which works to provide gifts for the students. This week the elementary students are traveling to their adopted high school classrooms, where they will receive gifts from their wish list.