‘Stop putting cars over people’: Harris County sues TxDOT over I-45 expansion project (Houston: car insurance, transfer)

[Mr. Clutch]

The biggest issue I have isn't necessarily the displacements, it's the lack of a coherent plan to deal with the most vulnerable people/businesses that will be displaced. That's not necessarily on TxDOT alone, but needs to be tackled by them along with the city and county.

But the plan itself isn't great. The corridor needs more capacity on all levels and if you're actually going to do this, it needs to be done right. Ideally that would include at the very least a dedicated BRT line and an additional free/HOV lane inside the Beltway. They chose a model with the only additional capacity being MAX lanes, and it seems to be a poor choice for the long term in my opinion.

[DabOnEm]

Originally Posted by Redlionjr

One of the things I really dislike about Texas is TxDOT. Judge Hidalgo is right, wider highways have been proven not to reduce congestion. Induced demand will not solve traffic issues in this city. Maybe they should put more money into making the city more walkable, bike friendly and add more rail lines. Has wider highways reduced traffic on Katy freeway? I just don't understand the logic in widening lanes to reduce traffic when it probably invites more traffic if anything. On top of more pollution.

I take it you never used the Katy before it's expansion when there was bumper to bumper traffic seven days a week. You need to widen freeways AND increase public transit to help solve traffic. Neglecting freeway expansion and not providing adequate alternatives (did Hidalgo provide an alternative at all?), then you wont help anything. A mass BRT system is not going to entice peope to use transit and neither is fast commute times due to WFH.

[Mr. Clutch]

Originally Posted by DabOnEm

I take it you never used the Katy before it's expansion when there was bumper to bumper traffic seven days a week.

Those days with the three-lane Katy Freeway were the worst. Endless traffic all day every day. The section between 610 and Highway 6 was the worst segment in the state for many years. West Houston, Katy and the Energy Corridor would have never taken off like they have without the freeway expansion. With that said, they should have kept the rail line - long term it would have been a bigger asset than the toll lanes.

Induced demand, insofar as it exists, is not the major driver of increased traffic on wider freeways - that driver would be economic and population growth, much of which would not come to a ridiculously congested corridor in the first place.

[oceangaia]

Originally Posted by Mr. Clutch

Those days with the three-lane Katy Freeway were the worst. Endless traffic all day every day. The section between 610 and Highway 6 was the worst segment in the state for many years. West Houston, Katy and the Energy Corridor would have never taken off like they have without the freeway expansion. With that said, they should have kept the rail line - long term it would have been a bigger asset than the toll lanes.

That rail line was barely adequate for freight and would have needed rebuilt to carry passengers. As I recall, they spent extra money to reinforce the bridges so that it could someday support rail in the center.

[nasser1990]

What nonsense. Just look at how the I-10 project happened, and the businesses that went when it was constructed. Houston is now an Alpha city, making 1-45 more manageable is a good thing, even with many vehicles commuting the Houston area.

[airdrawndagger]

Any chance the lawsuits and pushback from the community materially impact the project? I had a coworker try to convince me that the negative media coverage will make TxDOT reconsider. I'm skeptical and feel like TxDOT is going to do whatever they want to do.

[LocalPlanner]

For those asking for urban transit in the I-45 corridor, there is a light rail line literally walking distance from it to the east. METRO plans to extend that line a little bit to the north.

High-speed heavy rail transit going out to far suburban areas, a la BART (as opposed to light rail or commuter rail), is NOT GOING TO HAPPEN nor should it.

[Spade]

Originally Posted by LocalPlanner

For those asking for urban transit in the I-45 corridor, there is a light rail line literally walking distance from it to the east. METRO plans to extend that line a little bit to the north.

High-speed heavy rail transit going out to far suburban areas, a la BART (as opposed to light rail or commuter rail), is NOT GOING TO HAPPEN nor should it.

If Houston continues to densify which it looks like it is? Why not? It's more efficient than light rail by moving a larger passenger mode than light rail ever could for longer distances and for an entire city. There isn't a light rail system that touches BART or even WMATA (which would probably be the better system to use) when it comes to moving people efficiently. Heck, even MARTA is better than most LRT systems. Light Rail to me seems great for a starter as an urban transit system getting you from neighborhood to neighborhood. Houston's light rail system is pretty much a European style tram or trolley. You can have both functions as well as highways.

[usc619]

She's on the wrong side of this issue(pandering to a certain group of voters), overall she seems to be doing a good job.

[oceangaia]

Originally Posted by airdrawndagger

Any chance the lawsuits and pushback from the community materially impact the project? I had a coworker try to convince me that the negative media coverage will make TxDOT reconsider. I'm skeptical and feel like TxDOT is going to do whatever they want to do.

Nope. This project has been on the drawing board for a long time and the public hearings have been held. I saw the plans for it several years ago and was wondering what ever became of it. There isn't really going to be any pushback from the community except for a few small partisan groups.