Part of METRO is working

[HtownLove]

Originally Posted by hbcu

I was being sarcastic...the idea it ends at Northline is comical when the airport is a few miles up the road...even could run it up airline and go to JFK

The airport is not a few miles up the road. They would have had to more than double the extension length to reach the airport.

The airport is 14 miles north of the most northerly station currently in use. The extension adds what? 5miles to that? That still leaves a lot of miles to go.

Wish there was something faster than lightrail to the airport.
The current 7 mile route takes about 30 minutes to run.

Would assume the the trek to the airport would be double that.
The 102 bus takes about 15 minutes from greenspoint (West Road) to downtown when it takes the HOV. I have timed it.

What we need is more HOV buses or rail with there own ROW like the HOV.
A rail straight down Hardy would be sweet but not going to happen.

[hbcu]

I'm saying the extension would pay for itself much faster if it went to the airport considering they used an odd route...the new route goes doesn't go through any heavily populated area with a wide cross section of people who would frequent downtown weekly.

If it went to the airport, the door opens up for people from the North (Spring, Woodlands, etc) to use, the West (249 area) and possible the east (humble, kingwood) as opposed to a few people living on Fulton.

[HtownLove]

It runs the route of the 56 and other buses. The 56 is a busy route.

And as i mentioned before the current routes to spring, greenspoint, etc are faster than any light rail route.

In other words snail rail would be a step down.

If we had a straight ROW route from the airport then we'd be talking.

[Squidlo]

Originally Posted by HouTXmetro

Fares and taxes

Is that fuzzy math? Straight up ROI is a basic accounting concept. When you pay back the people you "borrowed" the money from and the project sustains itself on fares alone you can call it profit. Taking additional tax dollars and calling it profit is kinda nutso.


Think of it this way, I take 2000 dollars from you to start a lemonade stand. I "sell" you lemonade for 5$ a glass. I never give you back any money. Next year I need $5000 from you to keep my stand open.

According to you each glass of lemonade I sell you at 5$ and the $5000 I need each year to keep the stand open is pure profit.

[HouTXmetro]

Originally Posted by Squidlo

Is that fuzzy math? Straight up ROI is a basic accounting concept. When you pay back the people you "borrowed" the money from and the project sustains itself on fares alone you can call it profit. Taking additional tax dollars and calling it profit is kinda nutso.


Think of it this way, I take 2000 dollars from you to start a lemonade stand. I "sell" you lemonade for 5$ a glass. I never give you back any money. Next year I need $5000 from you to keep my stand open.

According to you each glass of lemonade I sell you at 5$ and the $5000 I need each year to keep the stand open is pure profit.

My apologies, i should had said revenue. Satisfied now?

[Chicago3rd]

Originally Posted by HouTXmetro

I don't know if they had enough to do it on their own, but the politicians basically tied Metro's hands behind it's back with that ballot initiative last November that killed any Metro profits from going towards rail and instead diverted it to road projects. I'm still pissed about that. And as much as I like Annise Parker, I'm still furious over her support of the diversion of funds.

METnRO supported it too and it was confusing, but many of us tried to warn the people of Houston that the initiative was anti-rail. The first thing we have to do is get rid of all the Metro people who put that initiative on the ballot...especially the one's who lied during the campaign and said even though no funding for light rail would come from the tax....they would find money in other places the tax cleared up.

[OducksFTW!]

I know commuter rails in Chicago are run by a seperate entity (METRA/BNSF) and they go pretty far out to the suburbs of Chicago(I'm talking from downtown all the way to Aurora!!).

Perhaps METRO could look at that model for future implementation of a suburban commuter line.

I agree with many, using the word "future" in a thread about Houston Transportation is quite a stretch...