Austin Infrastructure Academy tees up spring launch as billions in transit projects progress

Editor’s Note: The above video is from June 2024 when funding was secured for Austin Infrastructure Academy.

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin Infrastructure Academy will host its inaugural expo event later this spring to build up a local pipeline of infrastructure workers to support billions of dollars’ worth of mobility projects underway.

Mayor Kirk Watson said the academy will host its launch event on March 26 at 10 a.m. at Workforce Solutions Capital Area, with networking efforts available to introduce Austinites to potential careers and career readiness opportunities. Watson confirmed the news at an event alongside Austin Transit Partnership Wednesday morning, with the organization seeking local workers to help develop the city’s first light rail line under Project Connect.

That 9.8-mile, 15-station network is one component of roughly $25 billion in mobility infrastructure projects currently underway or in development, Watson said. City, county and transit officials alongside regional partners established the Austin Infrastructure Academy as an anticipated 10,000 workers annually will be required to build out those mobility projects.

The academy comes at a substantial time in the city’s history, Watson said, deeming it a “pivotal” moment.

“Right now, we’re making the most significant investments in infrastructure in modern history in Austin, Texas,” he said.

As both Austin’s economy and its population size continue to bolster, Watson added it’s critical that local job opportunities are made available to keep Austin affordable while helping employ local talent. It also comes as the mobility and infrastructure industry is burgeoning, with city estimates anticipating the sector will grow more than 80% by 2040.

Austin Transit Partnership’s event Wednesday also connected small and large firms interested in contractual work on the light rail system. Brad Cummings, senior vice president of procurement and contract management at ATP, said hundreds of businesses in Austin and more than 2,000 in Texas are eligible to provide the goods and services needed to build the first phase of light rail.

Cummings added ATP anticipates issuing its Request for Qualifications (RFQ) solicitation process for final design and construction work in June, with the hope that employing local talent will help create a sense of ownership over the project and its redevelopment opportunities for Austin.

“It is a momentous project,” said Greg Canally, executive director of ATP.

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