CapMetro Rail

CapMetro Rail
CapMetro Rail train at Lakeline station
Overview
Owner	Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Locale	Greater Austin, Texas, U.S.
Transit type	Hybrid rail
Line number	550
Number of stations	10[1]
Daily ridership	1,600 (weekdays, Q3 2024)[2]
Annual ridership	485,400 (2023)[3]
Website	capmetro.org/metrorail
Operation
Began operation	March 22, 2010[4]
Operator(s)	Herzog Transit Services
Number of vehicles	10 Stadler GTW[1]
Headway	30–40 minutes (peak), 60 minutes (off-peak)
Technical
System length	32 mi (51 km)[1]
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Top speed	60 mph (97 km/h)
Route diagram Legend Leander 0:00 183A Toll Road Lakeline 0:15 SH 45 Toll UP Howard 0:28 Loop 1 Broadmoor (2024) Kramer 0:35 McKalla Maintenance facility US 183 Crestview 0:42 Highland 0:45 I-35 MLK Jr. 0:52 Green Line to Elgin Plaza Saltillo 0:58 I-35 Downtown 1:02 All stations are accessible This diagram: view talk edit

CapMetro Rail is a hybrid rail (light rail with some features similar to commuter rail) system that serves the Greater Austin area in Texas and is owned by CapMetro, Austin's primary public transportation provider. The Red Line is CapMetro's first and currently only rail line, and connects Downtown Austin with Austin's northwestern suburbs. The line operates on 32 miles (51 km) of existing freight tracks, and serves 10 stations.^[1] After a series of delays, CapMetro Rail was inaugurated in March 2010.^[5] CapMetro added Friday evening and Saturday afternoon and evening regularly scheduled service on March 23, 2012. In 2023, the line had a ridership of 485,400, or about 1,600 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2024.

Several proposals to construct new tracks running through the densest areas of the city have been put forward over the years. Austin voters chose not to commit funds towards the construction of a light rail system in 2000 and 2014 but did do so in 2020.^[6] Since then, CapMetro has been planning new rail lines as part of the Project Connect plan. Construction of the Orange and Blue light rail lines would bring rail service to the western half of Downtown, the University of Texas at Austin, and the city's airport. The Green Line would operate similarly to the Red Line, operating on existing freight tracks between Austin, Manor, and Elgin.