Austin Businesses Call for Sixth Street Bike Lanes

Local business owners say bike lanes would improve safety and boost local business.

1 minute read

January 2, 2026, 7:00 AM PST

By Diana Ionescu @aworkoffiction


People walking on Sixth Street in Austin, Texas.

Rolf_52 / Shutterstock

A group of over 50 Austin businesses and Safe Streets Austin are asking the city to add bike lanes as part of the Sixth Street revitalization project, reports Melia Masumoto for KVUE.

In September, the city presented the public with three options for a street redesign, one of which included bike lanes on both sides, and one of which had no bike lanes at all. 

In a letter, the businesses wrote that bike lanes would not only make the street safer but also stimulate economic development. “It's an iconic street in Austin, and if you want people to get to your business from all the different modalities, whether they're walking, they're on a scooter, a bike, it should be safe,” said executive director of BikeTexas Robin Stallings.

The city plans to select a design and begin work on the project in 2026.

Monday, December 29, 2025 in KVUE

Young Professional

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

Get top-rated, practical training for planners

Overlapping highways

The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin

People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.

September 8, 2026 - Benjamin Schneider

The Hoover Dam blocking the Colorado River. The river's water level is noticeably low. The cliffs surrounding the blue water are brown and jagged.

US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico

A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.

September 11, 2026 - The Arizona Republic

Skyscrapers in Jersey City.

New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers

Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.

September 4, 2026 - The Cool Down

A New Jersey train approaches people waiting at the station.

Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds

A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.

September 15 - Mass Transit

A tall, gray power plant billows smoke into a blue sky.

EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants

Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.

September 15 - New York Times

A white RAPID bus. The lower half is light blue, and says RAPID in purple text. The bus is half visible, appearing from the left side of the image.

Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses

Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.

September 15 - KJZZ

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.