Houston: why expensive rail transit?

[kpoeppel]

I've heard that some people call your train the "wham bam tram" due to it's high accident rate.

[bostoner]

Houston has far more car crashes and DUI's than light rail accidents. Oh, except... those are drivers whamming into the tram.

[kpoeppel]

Alright, i get it...the same few posters like light rail. What about some different posters? Anyone else have an opinion?

[bostoner]

Well, I'm just sayin'... I don't hear an outcry we should get rid of the freeways because of car accidents. There are too many cars on the road, too many careless, reckless drivers who don't believe in turn signals and think they always have the right-of-way. I see it every day. This morning, some poor little boy on his way to school was crossing the street and narrowly avoided getting hit by a left-lane turner as I sat and watched in disbelief at the stop light. We're always in such a hurry to get nowhere.

[tstone]

Please take it lightly when I say it's always easy to tell who has lived here awhile and who hasn't:

Why should anyone be surprised if someone gets hit trying to cross a street around here without being super-vigilant? For real. We're not a pedestrian friendly city. Jack moves all over. Any native will tell you to watch your back, keep eye contact with the driver, give a friendly wave as you cross, or get smeared. The most basic level of street smart you teach your kids. I hope.

And people are always in a hurry to go nowhere in any large city. Drive through the big cities in CA, try Chicago, Miami, DC - they make us look tame in comparison. I've also heard plenty of stories about NYC, Boston and the NE in general. DFW is getting worse than here now. Anyway, the point is, it could be a lot worse.

I agree that in utopian bliss we'd join hands around the city because there are less evil cars on the road. But after we put down the pipe, we realize that it ain't happening. We can sit here and talk about what Houston could become, rails, trains, subways, etc, but the fact of the matter is traffic is just going to get worse. This is Texas. Houston, DFW, and Round Rock-Austin-SA will become clones of LA before they turn into anything else.

That's not to say I don't support some type of mass transportation. I see a lot of ''plans'' for all kinds of things and I'd like to believe them. Yes they will probably happen, but I just don't see them coming into fruition when they say it will.

[Guerilla]

Originally Posted by Cornwell

The light rails are great!!! oh wait... noo they get in wrecks all the time from what I've noticed... And they make turning in downtown extra confusing

They don't get in wrecks all the time. Maybe three years ago when it was new.

[Cornwell]

Maybe not lately but ya I use to go to downtown alot for some doctor visits and I saw a few wrecks. Haven't really been down there lately tho

[crbcrbrgv]

A leader of the New York City mass transit department was once asked why so few people used the city buses. He said "Show me a person over 30 who rides the bus and I will show you a life failure". Something to think about.