AUSTIN (KXAN) – Austin can expect to start seeing construction of a boardwalk on Lady Bird Lake later this summer. The City Council approved the $21 million contract this week.

Construction should wrap up late next year, and the boardwalk should open in 2014. The same contractor – Austin-based Jay-Reese – built the Pfluger Bridge across the lake little more than a decade ago.

Up to 15,000 people now use the Hike and Bike Trail each day. Some people told KXAN the bridge has been one of their biggest draws.

“Yeah, it’s very helpful,” said Sid Argueta, as he rode his bike across the bridge. “It’s a nice shortcut. You don’t have to go all the way to Congress.”

The boardwalk will also be a nice shortcut, bridging a 1.2-mile gap on the lake’s south side.