Hey...dunno why I'm posting this in D&D...maybe because of all the light rail threads that have been in here recently. Just wanted to share with you my first Houston light rail experience. I had jury duty yesterday. Had to be at 1019 Congress at 8AM. As some of you know, you can ride the bus for free to the courthouse for jury duty. I found out late Monday that you can ride the light rail for free to the courthouse for jury duty as well, so that's what I decided to do. Left my home in SW Houston around 7AM. Got to the Fannin South lot at 7:15AM. Parked and made my way to the train, which was waiting to leave. Train left at 7:25AM. Not very crowded at the beginning...maybe 10 people on the train. When we got to Reliant Stadium stop and then the Southlands stop (where Fannin and Knight Road split....near OST) a bunch of med students got on. Every seat was taken and many were standing. The med students got off at the Med Center and Memorial Hermann stops. Still other riders got on and rode the train all the way downtown. I exited the train at Main and Preston stop at 7:50 and was a half block from the courthouse. Coming back at 2PM after I was dismissed, there were around a dozen riders when I got on the southbound train at Main and Preston. Riders got on along the way....many were shopping downtown, others were visiting the museums. Around 25 people got off when the train got back to Fannin South. Here are my observations: 1. Light Rail will work in Houston. Now that they have built this 7.5 mile stretch, they must build it out to the suburbs. A Woodlands line and a Katy line should be top priority. I have seen the plans for the next phase of rail, and it involves building lines inside the loop. I totally disagree with this. The priority should be on building lines that bring people from the suburbs into the city. 2. The horn on the train is loud. You can hear it at least a couple of blocks away. This fact, coupled with the crossing arms at various locations along the rail line, lead me to believe that only the following types of people will be likely to crash their cars into the train: --drunk drivers --overly aggressive drivers on a testosterone/hormone jag --idiots who drive with their stereos jacked up to 10 while simultaneously talking on their cellphones --morons & imbiciles 3. The decor of the various stops is quite nice. At the Reliant Park stop, there were about a dozen pictures of various sporting events at the Astrodome, each with the headline "Do You Remember?". Kinda cool if you ask me. 4. There was plenty of friendly help and security at each stop. I hope it doesn't disappear after the Super Bowl. In short, I will definitely use it again. I can definitely see myself using it to head downtown for shopping, clubbing or eating out after parking my car at Fannin South. I did notice that the rail stops running around midnight, and I think they will have to extend it to 3AM or so on Friday and Saturday nights for the partiers among us. Conclusion: I am 100% behind light rail in Houston. My only regret is that they didn't start building it in the 1970s. Those who oppose light rail in Houston, in my opinion, are nearsighted and backwards-thinking. Anyone whose solution to Houston's traffic problems is building more and bigger freeways ought to have their heads examined. They should sit in their cars in their garages with the engine running and the garage door closed so they can get a whiff of what Houston's air will be like twenty years from now. See you on the train!
Thanks for the info. I worked on the light rail line in Minneapolis which will be opening in April and I hope that goes as well as the one in Houston. There's been alot of resistence in Minneapolis, a city that was previously known for urban planning, so it surprised me that Houston, which is not known at all for urban planning, was building a light rail line. I'll try it out next time I'm down in Houston. Does the line run to the Toyota Center?
I concur. I lived in Houston for 10 years and always supported alternate forms of transport to the already overcrowed streets. People in Texas are SO married to their autos. Had this been started in the 70s or even in the 80s then by now Houston would have a more complete network of rail to complement the freeways. Not just 7.5 miles. I think people are afraid of change and getting around without the almighty automobile is a foreign concept them. People opposed the rail because they said it cost to much and does too little, well it cant happen overnight and of course it would not be cheap. I also think that most people especially in Houston are not concerned with pollution. It is sad but these issues do not enter their minds at all. They are only concerned with the latest and greatest gas guzzling air polluting SUV, because it is some sort of status symbol, and it is their right as an american to pollute the air and destroy the earth. It was funny that during this last war that everyone jumped on the patriotic bandwagon. "Support you troops", "Taking pride in your country" etc. I would see these signs and stickers everywhere. but yet no one was trying to conserve gas or oil. No one was recycling and there was still litter everywhere. I would think that not polluting and trying to conserve what we already have would be the greatest form of patriotism and pride in your country? I swear I would see an American flag on the back of these oversized pickup trucks that gets only 10 mpg while some Bubba throws trash out the window and they are the ones who are screaming patriotism! I eventually moved from Houston. I had enough of the pollution and backwards thinking, now I live in a city with a train and I love it. I cant wait to see how the Houston trains turned out and in 20 years maybe it will actually be a legitimate alternitive.
RMTex -- great post...i had a similar, though less practical, experience with it on Sunday, when i took my wife and son to ride it...and then stopped off at the Live Sports Cafe on Preston for lunch with the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks. it looks great...and it seems it will serve really well. i'm like a little kid everytime i see the thing drive by...i had a hearing on Tuesday morning and everytime it went by i told the attorney i was with, "man, i love that train!"
I hear ya Max. The thing that got me was the recorded female voice announcing stops that I was very familiar with..."Next stop...Hermann Park/Rice University". I felt like I was on the subway in NYC..."next stop...Grand Central Station". I definitely see myself using it on weekends to head downtown for eating out and partying and perhaps Rockets and Astros games. Like I said earlier in the post, I think it's just a matter of time before they extend the time it runs to 3AM on Saturday and Sunday mornings for the club hoppers. I am very happy with it, and I hope and pray this 7.5 miles is just the beginning.
That's a good point. Also if we weren't dependent on foreign oil we would've never got involved in the Middle-East in the first place. The middle-east would've mattered to us about as much as Sub-Saharan Africa.
Should be interesting to see how many people ride it to Minute Maid Park and Toyota Center. I don't think they should charge for parking in the Metro lots.
I remember reading Bill Maher take about putting little American flags on their antennaes or "Support Our Troops" bumper stickers and saying, "It's the least I can do to support our troops." He said, "It LITERALLY IS the least you can do." Max: I'm like you. I see the train go by and I'm like a 10-year-old yelling, "Wheeeee!" I feel like I'm watching the train at the zool.
I think they should make the users of the Metro lots pay for parking. And not just some token $1 amount, they should pay the actual amount it costs the Metro to provide that lot. If they don't pay for it, guess who does: the taxpayers.
Had my first experience on the rail yesterday, met the gf at Rice after work, hopped on, got off at McGowen for a couple of beers at Leon's Lounge, got back on & headed downtown for dinner & caught the last train back. All 3 trains we took were very, very full. Does anyone know for sure (link?) that Metro plans on extending service times? It makes absolutely ZERO sense to cut off service at 10 PM every night.
That's feasible. I think we should take it a step further and make every single road in Houston a toll road. Most days, I rarely venture out of the West Gray/Shepherd/Waugh area, why in God's name should I have to pay for construction on the Katy when I may travel it once a week? Same with the North. I haven't been on the Gulf Freeway since I've moved back. The EastTex and Southwest Freeways, and the 610 Loop probably twice. And when construction needs to be done, instead of everybody footing the bill equally, they can charge the drivers of the road their equal share, leaving those of us who don't travel those roads with a heavier wallet. If the constant travelers on those roadways don't pay for it, guess who does: the taxpayers.
Random thought -- Doesn't the rail make a great statement about mass transportation, environmental friendliness, etc., when it goes by 100 or so full size Cadillac SUV's at Reliant Park?
