AUSTIN, Texas — On Monday night, an Interstate 35 exit near Downtown Austin will permanently close as crews work to expand the highway.
At 9 p.m., the southbound I-35 upper deck exit to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, exit 235A, will shut down. The exit is by the Moody Center to take drivers to MLK Boulevard and 15th Street.
Now, drivers going south on I-35 will have to use the lower deck exit in that area.
TxDOT broke ground on the $4.5 billion I-35 Capital Express Central project in late October. Planned updates include the construction of two carpool lanes between U.S. 290 and State Highway 71, lowering the main lanes from Airport Boulevard to Lady Bird Lake to remove the interstate’s upper decks, making room for a cap-and-stitch initiative that will add plazas above the interstate.
PERMANENT CLOSURE: Southbound I-35 upper deck exit 235A to Martin Luther King Jr Blvd will close permanently tonight at 9 p.m. Use lower deck exit. #ATXtraffic#My35pic.twitter.com/GS7PmvOerG
— TxDOT Austin (@TxDOTAustin) March 3, 2025
Crews began work on reconstructing and widening the Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard bridge in October 2024. In December of last year, TxDOT closed the northbound I-35 bypass at MLK Boulevard, directing traffic to the northbound frontage road.
Crews also recently began construction on a $630 million Lady Bird Lake bridge reconstruction, from Holly Street to State Highway 71.
Construction on the entire corridor isn’t expected to be completed for nearly a decade.