METRO releases rendering of METRORapid Katy fwy line (Houston, West: hotels, neighborhoods)

[Double L]

I don’t like the idea of linking to Studemont because it is very important that this serves downtown and I don’t like the idea of diverting METRO money to street repair. Funds for Public Transit should be put towards public transit. I also take back what I said earlier about making it street grade, we can’t find sufficient space on street grade so along the freeway is a good alternative. Houston is vastly underserved by public transit. Especially with high gas prices right now, many people want to take public transit now and Houston just serves so few options.

[ParaguaneroSwag]

Originally Posted by astrohip

You seem to have misread my post. I'm not saying it's too nice and expensive.

I'm saying it's unneeded!

Gotcha. Disagree. Even if this is 100% used for the poor + Special events, this wouldn’t serve the places where the line would pass over but rather the light rail’s population to go that direction

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by ParaguaneroSwag

I honestly will never understand the “this is too nice and expensive” argument. Being cheap and poorly done is even worse of an argument.

Usually when people think that way
they think that the status quote (existing option) is free.


There should be at least 2 tiers of public transportation
one that is useful for poor people that stops in every block and goes through the areas with lots of apartment complex
And a 2nd nicer tier that connects the suburb commuters to other suburbs or downtown.

[Double L]

METRO doesn’t have the cost of this plan but METROs annual budget is $700M a year based on a one percent sales tax, fare collections and federal grants.

[Double L]

I think this is a good plan. There isn’t enough room for grade-level BRT, so we need to place this along the freeway. They located a station at every location a station would be necessary. Houston will need to expand its public transportation. I would like to see this go further but we need to work with the finances we have. Good architecture and pedestrian connectivity at the stations too.

[ParaguaneroSwag]

Originally Posted by Double L

I think this is a good plan. There isn’t enough room for grade-level BRT, so we need to place this along the freeway. They located a station at every location a station would be necessary. Houston will need to expand its public transportation. I would like to see this go further but we need to work with the finances we have. Good architecture and pedestrian connectivity at the stations too.

Correct. In my opinion, this line is a game changer for 1 reason and 1 reason only. And that’s that the 3 business districts (Downtown, TMC, and Uptown) will each be connected along with Rice, UH, TSU, UST and other cc campuses plus the general recreation areas. This alone doesn’t solve the public transport problem but it’s a step in the right direction that may/should be continuously expanded. Being in a bad spot is one thing. Being at a standstill is another.

Agree with Dopo on the 2 separate tiers. One being buses that stop in every corner and the other one being the LRT/BRT system which needs to be expanded.

The University/Blue Line is on the table too now, they recently hired AECOM to engineer it.

[Double L]

Originally Posted by Dopo

Usually when people think that way
they think that the status quote (existing option) is free.


There should be at least 2 tiers of public transportation
one that is useful for poor people that stops in every block and goes through the areas with lots of apartment complex
And a 2nd nicer tier that connects the suburb commuters to other suburbs or downtown.

There should be a commuter system and a local neighborhood system but I don’t think the neighborhood system only serves the poor.

[airdrawndagger]

Originally Posted by ParaguaneroSwag

Correct. In my opinion, this line is a game changer for 1 reason and 1 reason only. And that’s that the 3 business districts (Downtown, TMC, and Uptown) will each be connected along with Rice, UH, TSU, UST and other cc campuses plus the general recreation areas. This alone doesn’t solve the public transport problem but it’s a step in the right direction that may/should be continuously expanded. Being in a bad spot is one thing. Being at a standstill is another.

Agree with Dopo on the 2 separate tiers. One being buses that stop in every corner and the other one being the LRT/BRT system which needs to be expanded.

The University/Blue Line is on the table too now, they recently hired AECOM to engineer it.

Afton Oaks residents are sharpening their pitchforks as we speak...

I'm guessing the line will be modified from the original plan?

[ParaguaneroSwag]

Originally Posted by airdrawndagger

Afton Oaks residents are sharpening their pitchforks as we speak...

I'm guessing the line will be modified from the original plan?

These are the hard lines that METRO announced in December. In phases of course. The Inner Katy route isn’t shown here, only the light rail system and the silver line in Uptown. But the Inner Katy Line’s construction is planned before this system begins, so I’m not sure which segment will break ground first.

Also, since Dopo asked about a map for the Inner Katy BRT route, I’ll post it too.

[ParaguaneroSwag]

Oh yeah, it appears they're adding a Memorial Park Station to this map ^. That one was recently announced. Which is good. This one is the first that appears in the video. I imagine those Memorial Park improvements teamed up with Metro to get this one done.

Next, connect the airports!