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Round Rock nurse and COVID-19 frontline worker Nhi Phan was among 7,500 vaccinated health care workers who watched the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Chiefs in person on Sunday night.
Phan, a specialty triage nurse at Baylor Scott & White Medical Center, attended the Super Bowl as part of a thank-you gift from the Dallas Cowboys for risking her life in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nhi Phan (LinkedIn)
Phan was one of four selected by the Cowboys in a drawing that saw over 700 applicants. Although she told KXAN she was rooting for the Chiefs, the game was still a win for Phan, who had never attended a live football game prior to Sunday night.
The drawing was part of an initiative by the NFL to gift tickets to over 7,500 vaccinated health care workers around the country. Workers were recognized for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic multiple times throughout the big game and were even thanked by President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden in an ad that aired before kickoff.
While all of the winning health care workers were vaccinated before the Super Bowl, social distancing practices such as wearing masks were still enforced to prevent COVID-19 transmission. Alongside the 7,500 health care workers, 14,500 others attended the game, bringing the total attendance to 22,000.
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(Project Connect)
The planned stations that have gotten the latest focus include Waterfront, Travis Heights and Lakeshore stations past Lady Bird Lake.
At the Waterfront station, the preliminary design aims to prevent visual obstructions and save on costs. This is accomplished by a transit guideway that will lower from the bridge to a level station.
Heading onto East Riverside Drive, the light rail faces a curve requiring a slow down to about 10 miles per hour.
The Travis Heights station could involve relocating a pedestrian crosswalk zone at Alameda Drive to Blunn Creek. Since light rails can't effectively operate on a steep grade, this allows the transit guideway to avoid that.
From there, the rail will extend to the Norwood Park area, and though it will reach along the right-of-way zone, the park will be able to remain open.
A view of the Blue Line by Lady Bird Lake. (Project Connect)
The line involves some coordination with the Texas Department of Transportation. That's because the department is working on an intersection that will have to be built before the phasing of the section of the Blue Line involving an I-35 crossing.
When it comes to the safety of cyclists and walkers, design ideas include a pedestrian hybrid beacon by East Bouldin Creek that would provide a protected signal to cross. And for the intersection TxDOT is carrying out, Project Connect is working with them on pedestrian access across the intersection. It could involve shared use paths along the street and crossings beneath it.
This summer, the public can expect 30% of design and cost estimates to be released. Though the project was $7.1 billion when voters approved it in November 2020, the latest estimates factoring in inflation and supply chain constraints show it could ultimately be upwards of $10 billion.
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