Finally.... http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/topstory2/1591221 The state environmental quality commission Wednesday approved, as expected, a recommendation to suspend the 55 mph speed limit in the Houston area. Where the limit used to be 70 mph on freeways in an eight-county area around Houston, it will now be 65; where the posted limit was 65, it will now be 60. This would apply to all vehicles. The hated 55 mph limit was imposed as part of a plan to clean the air in the Houston/Galveston region to meet federal air quality standards by 2007. But federal vehicle emission models showed that the limit would not lower levels of pollution as much as originally thought. In June, commissioners with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, facing intense public opposition, voted to suspend the limit and replace it with a dual speed limit -- cars and light trucks could revert to the old limits, while vehicles over 10,000 pounds had to stay at 55 mph. But last week, citing concerns about the safety and legality of a dual speed limit, the commission staff changed its mind and recommended the new limits. The change must still be approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and by the Texas Transportation Commission before the signs can start coming down. Earlier this week, the EPA posted both proposed changes in the federal register, which opens the issue up to public comment for 30 days. Approval could come soon after that. The transportation commission meets in late October and could take up the matter then, if the EPA is finished with it. In a statement, Gov. Rick Perry praised the commission's vote as "an approach that realistically balances public concerns with the need for strong clean-air measures." He said he is confident the EPA will approve the action.
I agree completely. The problem is that at this point it is impossible to build a comprehensive rail system in Houston. Suggestions anybody?
I think some type of mass transit needs to exist that connects Katy to downtown (to alleviate I-10 traffic), Sugarland to downtown (59 traffic) and something that leads down the I-45 corridor. I'm not sure if the right-of-way is there to build out a train system without sacrificing lanes of traffice for many years. I'd like to see a gondola system put in place. Something similar to what connects Roosevelt Island to Manhattan in New York. If this was able to link 50-mile distances, and accommodate many people, then I think we could be on to something. Why limit mass transportation to the ground? Financing this is another issue...
This news is music to my ears. As for trains, your preaching to the choir. I've used many mass-transit systems in different parts of the world and they're great! The longer you wait to build a system, the more it's going to cost.
In those other cities where mass transit is comprehensive, the system and the city grew at the same rate. Now that Houston has grown so large, how do you build a comprehensive system. It doesn't sound possible. I wish it was...because I really want a comprehensive mass transit system that does NOT involve busses.
I'm not sure a comprehensive system is possible for Houston, for the reasons you gave. But a great deal could be done. The contra-flow lanes cost a fortune to build, and are a help to the people who use them, but they also show how a train system to link the outer suburbs that must use the most congested arteries could be built. Down the center of the freeways. Other, more local, tram systems could be constructed where practical. It's a pity that Houston has never had zoning. We might not be faced with quite the same set of problems we face now... in transit and other areas. (ps- I hate buses as well)
monorail! monorail! monorail! monorail! Uhhhh...come to think of it, I think the monorail song has been reset in here plenty of times.
The problem with connecting the suburbs with downtown is that only 25,000 or so people work downtown. Offices are all over town (Galleria, Greenway, West side, etc). Just a thought.
Then you create junctions where people transfer to a line that takes them where they want to go. (or close) Hubs, if you will. Someone who wants to see the Texans and lives in the Woodlands (for example) goes to a station downtown and transfers to a line that takes him (or her) to the stadium (or from there to the Galleria area).
i drive this route everyday...here's the problem...once you get past the loop, there is no traffic! it zips along...most people are not going the same place...we don't have one downtown area...we basically have 4 (Greenway, Med Center, downtown and Galleria)...that is what makes mass transit so difficult in Houston...i don't think it's impossible...but it makes it much more difficult than in condensed cities up north that have grown up around rail.
agreed...but how long does that take??? and if it's faster just to take a car, why wouldn't you if you could afford it??? then you're allowed the flexibility of driving whereever you want... i checked on metro as an option to get me to law school at UH from the west side of town...my commute would have been 1 hour and 45 minutes, one way...with a transfer downtown, which means i'm braving houston weather everyday too, waiting on a bus. add to the fact that my trip each day was around $6 round trip when i could fuel up for an entire week in my old civic for around $9, and the choice became pretty clear...i was driving.
I completley agree, but there also needs to be one for 290. It is actually the second most congested freeway in Houston behind I-10. We need something, and it seems like there is currently little to no initiative.
There were many mornings where my trip to UH from FM1960 was an hour and a half...I would have gladly spent the extra 15 minutes so I could relax (nap) on the commuter bus. BTW...any decent rail system will be faster than a bus due to the fact that they do not have to deal with traffic. The current rail plan is half-baked and DOES have to contend with street traffic, thus nullifying its benefits.
1. i understand...but that was not the case with MY commute...my commute was 35 minutes by car...or 1 hour and 45 minutes by bus...see what i mean? not even close...and again, it wasn't cost effective either...particularly when you still have/want to own a car for weekend driving. 2. i understand, but that's not necessarily so. and there is no way that every possible route will ever be covered by rail...not in a city this big...any mass transit system in houston, even with trains, will have to have buses branching off from stations. 3. keep in mind, my route down I-10 in a Metro Park & Ride Bus, where the rail would be in the current proposals, was down the HOV lane...I doubt a train would end up making that leg of the journey any quicker than the buses currently do.
I live in the southwest area in Austin and wouldn't take a bus downtown to work. My wife doesn't use a bus and she works close to the Capitol. But she has used park and ride when it's been necessary because of car problems, etc. It adds a huge amount of time to her commute, so I can understand that aspect of it. She would love to be able to use rail. Rail is a years long controversy here as well as in Houston. I think an 80mph+ train down the HOV might be an improvement, MadMax. Especially if it connected to a hub that could send you to another of the scattered "downtowns" that Houston has. San Francisco has BART trains that run on and below ground. I've ridden them and was hugely impressed. Of course I'm from Houston, so it doesn't take much. I don't know what the public subsidy is for BART and if the locals think it's worth it. Maybe B-Bob knows. They are FAST and go under the bay (in an earthquake zone). If they could keep the water out, I'm sure Houston could manage it. Just sort of thinking out loud.
1. i can't see them placing 80 mph trains down the center of the freeway...i doubt it... 2. hard to build a subway when you're so close to sea level...that leaves you with surface or elevate...surface interferes with traffic...elevated is unsightly and expensive.
