WOO HOO!!! Light Rail Gets New Life

March 8, 2001, 5:03PM

Light rail gets another chance
By RAD SALLEE
Copyright 2001 Houston Chronicle

The First Court of Appeals today tossed out the temporary injunction that has blocked the Metropolitan Transit Authority from starting work on a light rail line from downtown to Reliant Park.

The high court's action sends the lawsuit filed by Houston City Councilman Rob Todd back to the court of District Judge John Devine, who made the initial ruling, for a full hearing on the issue.

Todd's lawsuit is seeking to halt further action on the 7.5-mile rail line until citizens get a chance to vote on the plan.

Todd told state appellate judges on March 2 that Houston residents have a " fundamental voting right" to decide whether to build a light rail line on their city's streets. But Jonathan Day, representing the Metro, argued that opponents of the planned line are misreading the City Charter and trying to kill the project through delays and litigation.

On Feb. 2, Devine granted a temporary injunction that blocked Metro from starting construction of the estimated $300 million project.

Groundbreaking for the rail line was to have started Feb. 1. Metro says the delay costs more than $2 million a month.

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Squirrels is all I eat!

 

The reason they aren't bulding suburban lines is because of the exorbidant costs associated with it as a "starter line." Assuming right of ways, claiming eminent domain and dealing with construction on rail lines as long as 20 or 30 miles is something that cannot be decided with a broad stoke of the brush.

I met Metro Chairmain Robert Miller during the campaign and I found him to be exceeding intellegent and very nice. He really explained the downtown rail very well.

If you go to Metro's site, you will see just how impressive it will really be. It will eliminate something like 300 buses off the streets of downtown. In addition, if you look at the sheer numbers, downtown needs this.

Downtown residency is expected to grow 3 to 5 times in the next five years. The buildings in downtown Houston are at 98 percent of capactiy with three new skyscrapers on the way. Eight new hotel projects are underway in downtown.

As it stands, some 45,000 people travel from downtown to the medical center or vice versa every day.

I agree that we need a comprehensive plan, but where do they build first? To Katy? To Sugar Land? To Clear Lake? To the Woodlands? To Kingwood? To Copperfield? To Baytown? Who chooses and why?

This fits in with the overall scheme of downtown - the arena, the new hotels, the new restaurants and clubs - the new venues including the 2nd phase of Bayou Place and the Hobby Center for the performing arts. Plus, it works hand in hand with Reliant Park. Not only is the football stadium a big deal, but the new Reliant Expo Center is going to be 5 million square feet!!!

Finally, the medical center is adding a HUGE bio-technology district by 2005 that will employ thousands.

The more people move close to or into downtown, the more the need for moving people. I don't think I've EVER ridden a bus but I'll be one of the first on light rail. I know many others like me too.

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Squirrels is all I eat!

 

LOL!!! Yeah, my wife would kill me if I did that!!!

Actually, I was VERY skeptical of light rail and Metro until I spoke with Miller, Jordy Tollet (the head of Houston's Convention and Facilities Mgmt Dept.) and Bob Eury of the Downtown District. They were VERY convincing. I just asked them to make sure the rail cars had bicycle racks!

http://www.hou-metro.harris.tx.us/lrt/railintro.htm
That's the link to Metro's rail page.

http://www.neosoft.com/~msc713/
That's the link to the Main Street Coalition website.

http://www.ci.houston.tx.us/pd/main_street_cor.htm
That is the link to the City of Houston Planning and Development site and, specifically, their main street project. You can download a PDF version there that is VERY impressive showing every aspect of the redevelopment of Main Street from UH Downtown all the way to Reliant Park.

Enjoy.


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Squirrels is all I eat!