Taylor hopes to get a bite of the $250 million pie the Texas Department of Transportation is offering to help cities construct alternative transportation projects.
Municipal staff presented the City Council with two preliminary plans for grant projects at a Feb. 13 meeting. Both projects would construct sidewalks or shareduse paths in the city’s hightraffic areas. “It’s very competitive. I would almost call it hypercompetitive,” said Jeffrey Jenkins, deputy city manager. “But you’ve got to take your shot and your opportunity and see whether we can get some of this funding.”
The TxDOT grants are 80/20 matching funds, so the city would be responsible for paying 20% of the cost of the project.
Though Taylor is submitting two proposals for consideration, Jenkins said TxDOT has indicated the agency will only fund one per municipality.
One of Taylor’s projects is intended to improve pedestrian and bicycle connectivity within the city. The other paves the way for Samsung Austin Semiconductor employees to potentially walk or cycle to work.
The cross-town connector is expected to cost $4,425,000, which would put Taylor’s 20% share at $885,000. The project would complete missing sidewalk segments on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Dolan Street, Fifth Street, Old Thorndale Road and part of the hike and bike trail.
Leslie Pollack, a transportation engineer at HDR, told council the city unsuccessfully applied for a TxDOT grant for the project in 2023 and was encouraged by the agency to apply again.
“In 2023 it was a larger project. It was $8.5 million, but since that time the city has contributed funding to design and construction of a piece of that project, so that piece is already underway,” Pollack said. “One of the great things about this project is you’ll be able to show that the city has made progress towards implementing this project. Your moving forward highlights that it really is a priority for the city.”
Council members Robert Garcia and Gerald Anderson asked Pollack to make some adjustments to the affected street segments so residents of nearby neighborhoods could have safer access to Fannie Robinson Park.
The second proposal being submitted to TxDOT would add an off-street, shared-use path on the east side of FM 3349 connecting Samsung Highway on the south and Mustang Creek on the north. The project would expand on adjoining plans by Williamson County and TxDOT to build a multi-modal network off-street around the Samsung area.
The cost of the FM 3349 project is $2,916,000 in 2025 pricing. The estimated match for Taylor to fund would be $583,200.
If TxDOT approves the preliminary submittals, the council would need to direct staff to submit the full application before the April 16 deadline. If either of the grants are successful, Taylor’s portion of the funding would need to be procured in 2027 or 2028, potentially
