By Belle Nelson
The prospect of Lone Star Rail (LSTAR) coming to Hays County continues to be on the minds of Buda city officials.
The most recent discussion took place at the city’s Oct. 20 city council meeting. According to Mayor Todd Ruge, interest in the project continues in Buda.
“It’s definitely something we’re looking into,” Ruge said.
The 118-mile rail project would run from Georgetown to San Antonio, and could include 16 stations along the route. LSTAR stops could include New Braunfels, San Marcos, Kyle, Buda and Round Rock.
LSTAR issued a statement earlier this year that said it plans to “develop a critical mobility initiative” in Central and South Texas, and that it is going to add “much needed capacity in the congested IH-35 corridor by providing passenger rail service on the existing Union Pacific freight line that parallels the interstate.”
According to LSTAR’s statement, the “key element” is that rail travel is “predictable and dependable,” while other variables, such as accidents and weather, cause delays for drivers.
“Travel time will be competitive with, if not faster than, travel by automobile,” according to LSR’s statement.
The project will provide 80 miles of new grade-separated freight line that will allow freight trains to travel at almost three times the speed at which they travel now. Freightliners currently travel at approximately 20 mph in rural areas.
The bypass will remove more than 30 trains per day from urban areas in Central and South Texas. It would reduce wait times at existing railroad crossings.
In addition, LSTAR put together a study on the economic impact that the rail would have on the city.
One of the major reasons for Buda’s hesitation is that LSTAR isn’t in the city’s budget to make such a commitment to the project.
LSTAR said in its presentation that the rail would essentially pay for itself. Buda could potentially bring in enough revenue to fund the project. That could be done if the city collected a percentage of property taxes in a specified zone surrounding the area where the rail stops.
“Studies have been done concerning the way that surrounding areas typically flourish financially, rail stops usually create their own unique district of commerce…a sort of one stop shop with restaurants, and shops,” Ruge said.
According to Ruge, this is one of the reasons for interest in the project.
“This is something the members of the city council are excited about,” Ruge said.
The rail would most likely stop by the current city hall facility located on Main Street.
Although a new city hall is in the works, Ruge said “it would be nice to utilize the old city hall, to essentially preserve it.”
“Before any formal decisions are made, the city council would like to see the project progress a bit more, and see who all the players are,” Ruge said. “We also don’t meet the population requirement of 18,000, so we would have to gain sponsorship from the county.
