I tried my best to address this issue in another thread to no avail (Houston: homes, neighborhood)

[binkyman]

Originally Posted by HtownLove

Yes you can. I have been on numerous trains that are express like that.

Was it possible to steer those trains off the track to pass the ones in front of them? Sorry, I just can't for the life of me understand what you are talking about. The idea of passing other trains loading and unloading at stations would require a total of four tracks at each station requiring adding two by-pass tracks on both sides which would be a logistics nightmare! Or would you quit service for a while or slow it down for the normal service allowing the express trains to zoom along unabated to the airport?

Maybe you could indeed do something of this nature, but it would be very problematic. That is what I've been saying all along.

[Spacecityroller]

Connecting Hobby to the current line wouldn't be very hard. Just continue the purple line from where it currently ends.



That is roughly between 4 and 5 miles more and only 2 bridges needed. One at the RR crossing near palm center and one over the bayou.

[Willsson]

Originally Posted by travelguy_73

OK, I'm trying to read between the lines, because some of the lines don't make a lot of sense. Are you saying that because Houston has lower income neighborhoods, businesses, and blight between downtown and the airport, that the line will be a failure because people won't want to ride with the residents and customers of said areas? Have you been to every other city with rail connecting cities to their airports? This is a common thread in every major city around the world, so I'm not getting what the issue is.

London Gatwick does this. There is a regular train that makes the dozen or so stops between Gatwick and Victoria (or wherever). Then there is the epxress that leaves Gatwick and doesn't stop until it reaches Victoria Station (or wherever). The fare for the express I believe is the same as the milk run.

*It's been a while since I've made that trip so not sure I recall. I did purchase an express ticket and walked right onto the milk run. Sat there a couple of minutes and decided it was the wrong train, so got off and walked over to the epxress.

[HtownLove]

Originally Posted by binkyman

Was it possible to steer those trains off the track to pass the ones in front of them? Sorry, I just can't for the life of me understand what you are talking about. The idea of passing other trains loading and unloading at stations would require a total of four tracks at each station requiring adding two by-pass tracks on both sides which would be a logistics nightmare! Or would you quit service for a while or slow it down for the normal service allowing the express trains to zoom along unabated to the airport?

Maybe you could indeed do something of this nature, but it would be very problematic. That is what I've been saying all along.

I'm really not getting what you are saying. What other trains are you talking about? Do you know how many right of ways are down Mykawa?

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by HtownLove

Darn. Just typed a beautiful post but my phone lost it.

Anyway here's the gist if it.

I think that DFW and Houston should model their system on national rail in countries like Switzerland.

Switzerland is just a little bigger than DFW and Houston in land area and population at 15,000 sq miles and about 8m people.

The national rail connects economical centers via heavy rail and then these economic centers are serves by short light rail routes or buses.

Houston and Dallas needs commuter rail connecting economic centers without stops. Then when you get to downtown you can hop a bus or rail that stays downtown, or uptown, or Katy or where ever.

I think it is ridiculous to blanket low density cities as large as ours with light rail. Parts of the cities should be blanketed but not the entire thing.

That corridor between uptown Houston and gulfton/ sharpstown is about the same size as Geneva in land area and population. Geneva has no city heavy rail. When you get to Geneva by heavy rail you get around on light rail, trolly or bus.

I think it's so much more convenient to zip to uptown via a non stop route and then use a local route there to go exactly where you are going.

I think blanketing the entire metro with snail rail is ridiculous. Concentrated systems connected by heavy rail is in my opinion the way to go.

Bla, bla, bla
if it doesn't fit in a bumper sticker we don't want it in Texas (sarcasm)

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by binkyman

Houston is going to have a big problem with connecting its light rail system with either of its two airports.

You know what would be better for Houston's economy and easier to build
Light-rail to Galveston

Just dreaming, I know the anti-progress people will never let something like that happen.

[Ketabcha]

Originally Posted by binkyman

Back from the woods where I'm from, there ain't such a thing as an express train unless it be a bus. I mean, what are you gong to do? Build the system four tracks wide or place tracks on top of the slow trains so that the express train won't have have to slow down any riding right over the top of them? See, you fellows just haven't thought any of this out.

If Metro is going to connect the core of the city to its airports, it is most likely going to have to be some kind of commuter rail. I guess Metro could run the light rail line west going down Harrisburg bending it back to the southeast towards Hobby. That route would have a lot of Hispanics and Hobby will have foreign flights going to Latin America.

IAH is an extremely messy and sticky situation. As I said, DART got lucky. For them to be in the process of connecting building two stations at both airports is a monumental achievement.

Actually, Binkyman, the trains, "local and express", can alternate using one set of tracks. If you miss the express you can hop a local and vice-versa if the one you want stops at your station. It works. I've seen it in action in NYC. I know that Houston is not NYC but the same set up could work in Houston.

[binkyman]

Originally Posted by Willsson

London Gatwick does this. There is a regular train that makes the dozen or so stops between Gatwick and Victoria (or wherever). Then there is the epxress that leaves Gatwick and doesn't stop until it reaches Victoria Station (or wherever). The fare for the express I believe is the same as the milk run.

*It's been a while since I've made that trip so not sure I recall. I did purchase an express ticket and walked right onto the milk run. Sat there a couple of minutes and decided it was the wrong train, so got off and walked over to the epxress.

What about all those suckers getting passed by? No way you are going to be able to do that. If you are going to run an express like that, it needs to be in an industrial area. You expect to run that train past residences that can use it? And where is their train? This isn't God save the queen country. You will need to incorporate some stations in there to make it acceptable.

[binkyman]

Originally Posted by Ketabcha

Actually, Binkyman, the trains, "local and express", can alternate using one set of tracks. If you miss the express you can hop a local and vice-versa if the one you want stops at your station. It works. I've seen it in action in NYC. I know that Houston is not NYC but the same set up could work in Houston.

On any theoretical train, the caboose can never surpass the locomotive. Therefore, any express train will, theoretically speaking, be traveling at the same maximum rate as the slowest train ahead unless there is a way to jump over, fly over, or bypass said slower train.

[binkyman]

Originally Posted by Dopo

You know what would be better for Houston's economy and easier to build
Light-rail to Galveston

Just dreaming, I know the anti-progress people will never let something like that happen.

Galveston tends to get destroyed every fifty years, really hammered every twenty-five, hopelessly flooded every ten, and inundated with massive amounts of sewage on a daily basis.