Loop 343 is a 5.186 miles (8.3 km) state-maintained roadway located in Austin, Texas

Austin, Texas

Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...

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History

Loop 343 was formed in 1961 along the previous routes of SH 71 and US 290 as those roads were realigned. It passed through downtown Austin along 6th and 7th Streets to Lamar Boulevard.

It was rerouted in 1977 to use 1st Street (now Cesar Chavez Street) west of I-35. In 1987, the portion east of I-35 was removed from state maintenance, forming the current alignment.

Between 1978 and 2008, a segment of Cesar Chavez Street in downtown Austin was one-way eastbound. Westbound traffic on Loop 343 was diverted to Second and Third Streets before merging back onto Cesar Chavez Street at . In 2008, as part of a larger public works project, the City of Austin converted Cesar Chavez Street back to two-way traffic along its entire length.

Route description

Loop 343 begins in south Austin at the intersection of US 290/SH 71 and the southern terminus of Loop 360. It proceeds north along Lamar Boulevard for 3.5 miles (5.6 km) towards downtown Austin. Here, it crosses Town Lake

Town Lake

Lady Bird Lake is a reservoir on the Colorado River in downtown Austin, Texas, in the United States. It was created in 1960 by the construction of Longhorn Dam and is owned and operated by the City of Austin and the Lower Colorado River Authority. The surface area of the lake is 416 acres, and it...

 on the Lamar Boulevard Bridge

Lamar Boulevard Bridge

The Lamar Boulevard Bridge is a historic bridge carrying Lamar Boulevard over Lady Bird Lake in downtown Austin, Texas, United States. The bridge features six open spandrel concrete arches and carries thousands of vehicles daily across the river...

. This segment of Loop 343 is a four-lane heavily-developed urban road.

At this point, Loop 343 heads east along Cesar Chavez

César Chávez

César Estrada Chávez was an American farm worker, labor leader, and civil rights activist who, with Dolores Huerta, co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers ....

 Street for 1.6 miles (2.6 km), past Austin City Hall and the Austin Convention Center

Austin Convention Center

The Neal Kocurek Memorial Austin Convention Center is a multi-purpose convention center located in Austin, Texas, USA. The building is the home of the Texas Rollergirls, and was also home to the Austin Toros basketball team, until their move to the Cedar Park Center in nearby Cedar Park in 2010.The...

, to its terminus at I-35

Interstate 35 in Texas

Interstate 35 in Texas is a major north–south Interstate Highway running from Laredo near the United States-Mexico border to the Red River north of Gainesville where it crosses into Oklahoma. Along its route, it passes through the cities of San Antonio, Austin, and Waco before it splits into two...

. This segment of Loop 343 is a four-lane downtown road.

Loop 343 is only signed as such at its entrance from US 290/SH 71. There are no shields displayed anywhere along its length, nor on its entrance from I-35.

Future

The City of Austin is planning extensive development near the former Seaholm power plant site west of the intersection of Lamar Boulevard and Cesar Chavez Street. In addition to new multi-family residences and new public arts facilities, the development will include reconfiguration of the intersection at Lamar and Cesar Chavez.

Junction list

County	Location	Mile	Junction	Notes
Travis Travis County, Texas As of 2009, the U.S. census estimates there were 1,026,158 people, 320,766 households, and 183,798 families residing in the county. The population density was 821 people per square mile . There were 335,881 housing units at an average density of 340 per square mile...	Austin Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...