Houston is a textbook example of poor city planning. The lack of zoning has resulted in the city becoming nothing more than a network of freeways connected by strip mall shopping centers and gas stations. What I still think is appalling is that there's no mass transit available from downtown to IAH. Considering IAH is 20+ miles north of downtown there needs to be some sort of viable transport that gets you there quickly. Look at San Francisco with the BART or Portland with the MAX line. Both very cheap and convenient for getting to the airport.
As someone who rode the bus through college for four years, I completely disagree. You have to plan like a mofo, and get used to not being out after 11:00 pm; but 15-30 minute wait with stops every other street seems fair enough for what I remember in '97 - '02 was $2/day, $30/month. And most of my co-workers right out of school swore by that Park N' Ride. I wish I'd known about that service before turning down any internship or job outside of the Beltway. I do remember wishing there were more sidewalks, though; I seem to remember walking on a grassy knoll of an overpass just to get to a theater to see Phantom Menance. And riding the 82 on Westheimer at 3:00 - 4:00 pm on a weekday? I don't know if I felt sorrier for myself or those poor, dejected-looking schoolchildren.
There is a direct connection to IAH from Downtown. And people really exaggerate this lack of zoning thing. Seriously.
Is that bus line reliable or fast enough? High speed rail goes around 90mph, which is what Houston needs for the airport.
It'll get you there in 30. You think that is too slow? I imagine it is as reliable as any other bus system you've ever used. The problem is that while this was intended to alleviate parking and traffic issues at the airport, there is no designated place to leave your car at the Metro. So you have to end up parking at a contract lot or garage and paying per day, so you essentially save no money on the deal... if not come out behind, depending on parking rates.
Man's dominion over nature? The expression of man's desires for his children? The result of capitalism? Of what mankind can achieve? Because this city could have been anything and this is what we chose. I drive all over this town at 80 miles an hour, in a dry 72 degrees with fingertip access to 3000 song titles that I can play at a 100 decibels. I can stop off at any given point and get whatever I could want to eat or drink, choose from 100 movie screens, buy anything including a gun or a woman or a woman with a gun. This is a great city man.
Allow me to push this ever so closer to the D&D... 1) How does Houston "dominate" nature? Or dominate nature more than any other city? 2) Debatable. I'd say a lot of things in Houston are expressions of man's desire for himself. Not for the future. Unless you mean to say this desire is to show he doesn't care about his kids. But these are subjective obviously. 3) If that is the case, wouldn't all cities be mostly the same, since they're all "the result of capitalism"? 4) What have we achieved, as a city? I'm curious.
For $15, I can go from Baltimore to NYC. For $7, I can go from Baltimore to DC. For $3.50 I can go from Baltimore to BWI Why does $15 seem reasonable to get to the airport from downtown?
can Houston take any existing old railroad lines and convert them like Los Angeles is doing? they are expanding the old Exposition line from the 30's and 40's and turning into a light rail to Santa Monica. the current system services downtown to Hollywood with a few stretches of true underground subway... anyone who says subways or mass transit doesn't work with urban sprawl simply hasn't experienced mass transit working for the masses, rather than servicing few...
Ditto on all points, nice post. Especially #4 applies to me. We also have a nice warm climate which makes commuting a reasonable transportation choice year round.
If lots of people used it, or it were more efficient, etc, then I'm sure the cost wouldn't be so crappy. I was hoping that $15 was a round trip pass. But no
Dude, now you are reaching. If you are so worried about driving around in a car with a "rob me" sign, get a damn Civic! Besides, your car is not all that valuable if everyone else also has a car, cars are not a rare commodity in Houston. It is highly unlikely you will get robbed in your car anyways, unlike the odds of being robbed while walking around with a wallet or a purse on your person, you are a much easier target then.
I ride the Metro bus. Round trip from Katy to the Medical Center is $9.00. If my company didn't supplement the cost I would probably drive. I leave for work at 5:20AM and get home at 5:00 PM. For those wondering why I live so far from my work, it's where I could afford to buy a house. I wish there was an express rail that ran out the major highways with strategic transfer sites along the way. I don't really know Metro's plan but it doesn't seem well thought out. Mike K
1) How are you more likely to get robbed riding a subway or bus than driving your car to and from places? You have to get out of your car eventually, just as how you have to get off the bus/train. And chances are there will be more people around when you get off the bus/train, rather than when you pull into a parking lot or garage somewhere. So I wouldn't say that you're "less" likely to get robbed driving. 2) If you are so worried about walking around and getting mugged at random on mass transit, then DRIVE YOUR CAR and stop telling us the rest of us can't have that option! We're not preventing you from driving anywhere. 3) You have your wallet/purse/ipod/laptop/valuable stuff on you when you're driving too, in fact, you probably have more of it. Also sitting in a car that makes you a target for carjacking in addition to a regular old mugging after you get out of said car. Plus, your car is a guaranteed clean getaway for a would-be robber, unlike being on foot. You can slice it any way you want, but the security issue is a really weak argument to make. I wouldn't feel any more or less safe on a bus or train than I would in my car. And if you want to take it a step further and say safety, then you're definitely fighting a losing battle there as cars are one deadly ass mode of transportation. The whole argument against mass transit in Houston is supremely weak sauce. You like having a tricked out car and think it is an expression of yourself? Cool bro, but don't harsh my transit buzz. No one is planning to put a train track over your highway, rendering your sweet ride unusable. Same thing goes if you like to stop at every strip mall and gas station or titty bar in town. Awesome for you! Keep doing it. But that has NO bearing on the matter at hand.
