Now that I can actually find my way to and from our building, I feel it’s time to blog about having a car in downtown Austin. 

Dealing with Austin traffic was one of my biggest concerns about moving downtown. Bill and I still drive north on MoPac to work most mornings. The morning commute is easy and less than 20 minutes from parking garage-to-parking garage. No problem.  

The evening commute is another story. MoPac is backed up both north and south for several hours starting at 4 PM. The drive back south on MoPac takes at least twice long as in the morning. Bill has tried a few different routes, going down side streets instead of taking the highway. He says that traffic is still slow on these alternate routes. So we’re trying to be on the road before 4 PM or staying up in north Austin until after rush hours are over. 


[For non-Austinites: MoPac is a limited-access highway named for the Missouri-Pacific railroad. Tracks still run between the north and south lanes and trains are often chugging along beside your car.]



I was also worried about the parking garage logistics since I have never lived in a high-rise before. The garage is on floors 2 through 6 of this building, although recycling bins and a Lamborghini take up much of the space on the sixth floor. Each floor has a few reserved spots near the elevators…for an extra monthly fee which we are not paying. We expected to be banished to Floor 5 but, much to our surprise, it’s fairly easy to get a parking spot on a lower floor. We have only lost our cars once. Actually, I lost both cars. (Have I mentioned that moving was traumatic?) Bill walked down through the parking garage until he found them both again. I am pleased to report that we haven’t lost a single car since implementing our high-tech Car Tracking System: