History of I-35

About

1973-74

The upper decks are constructed from Airport Boulevard to just south of Manor Road. This marks the last major expansion of I-35 in Austin.

1962

Interstate Highway 35 officially opens as a controlled-access, 6-lane interstate highway through downtown Austin, aligned on what was formerly known as East Avenue.

March 29, 1962: H.C. Petry cutting the "ribbon of girls" at the opening ceremony of I-35

1960

East Avenue as downtown freeway construction begins. Taken from the top of Brackenridge Hospital.

Construction of I-35 in Austin near Brackenridge Hospital

1958

East Avenue, looking south from approximately Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard

1956

The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 calls for the development of a 41,000 -mile interstate highway system and authorizes $25 billion to help built it.

1955

1954

1950

The construction of an overpass at 19th Street combined with widening projects in 1951 helped to convert East Avenue into what eventually became I-35.

1933

East Avenue, which later becomes I-35, is paved with landscaped median islands. The roadway was reported to also be referred to as Calle Ancha, or “the wide street,” in Spanish.