Comments on: Uptown’s Not Waiting for Light Rail, Planning Bus System Along Post Oak Instead

By: Mark Gonzales

Mark Gonzales — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 13:27:50 +0000

I think this is a fantastic idea to help ease congestion in the area. It’s a much cheaper option than light rail. I come from the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles where they built a right of way busway and it real beautified the areas surrounding the busway. The buses were designed very well, modern, sleek, and spacious. The project was considered a success. Check out the article from LA Times regarding its success http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jun/27/local/la-me-orange-line-20120628

By: John (another one)

John (another one) — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 11:34:46 +0000

@charlie – no, most of the T is plain old subway-style trains. The oldest line (Green Line) uses the same trolley-style cars that you see on SF’s Muni, because outside the central city it IS a light rail system. However the red, orange, and blue lines are plain old subways. The Silver line, the new BRT, does run underground in parts.

By: htownproud

htownproud — Sat, 19 Jan 2013 17:38:44 +0000

what about charging to drive in the Uptown/Galleria area (i.e., like London)? That would certainly encourage people to use public transportation to and from the Galleria (of course it may also kill business).

By: Anon22

Anon22 — Sat, 19 Jan 2013 05:41:21 +0000

Yeah there were some BRT proposals a while back. The problem is that they ended up looking nothing like BRT…if I recall correctly they even took away the dedicated lane advantage. I hope that doesn’t happen here.

By: charlie

charlie — Sat, 19 Jan 2013 04:15:53 +0000

I may be mistaken but isn’t most of the T in Boston effectively made up of buses running underground? The problem with the existing light rail in Houston is that it is damn slow and makes too many stops….

By: Thomas

Thomas — Sat, 19 Jan 2013 02:52:47 +0000

If people don’t like to ride buses, why not just make these look like rail cars? Seating style, outward appearance, the whole 9 yards. Just cover up the tires. Most folks will be too busy to tell the difference.

By: Hal

Hal — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:28:40 +0000

As MJ noted above, the main issue a lot of people have with buses is that it is subject to the same congestion as single occupant vehicles, and they are slowed down even more by that congestion with frequent stops and increased difficulty navigating a vehicle of that size.

I could see healthy ridership of BRT since it gets a dedicated lane, meaning it doesn’t fight through the congestion regular buses do. My personal opinion is I don’t care whether the vehicle is called a train or a bus, as long as it provides an ATTRACTIVE alternative to current options (regular buses or personal cars).

By: Uptown Resident

Uptown Resident — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:05:03 +0000

ugh – METRO should issue special passes to all the car-haters….It would really boost ridership (which has been on a steady decline for years!) All the Mass-Transiteers could be required to conduct 100% of their life’s activities using PUBLIC TRANSIT ONLY……Try going to Sam’s/Costco without your car one day……or getting to school when your kid’s sick in the middle of the day……We’re not talking about the occasional trip to the Galleria or Rodeo as a convenience….

By: John (another one)

John (another one) — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 10:34:55 +0000

People need to get over their “OMG, it’s not a train” nonsense.

On my last trip to Boston I used the Silver Line, the BRT (Yes! Boston has BRT! Right in the center of the city by the waterfront!) that goes through my old ‘hood (built after I left). It was a fast, efficient, and pleasant way to get from the airport to the waterfront to catch a boat out to Cape Cod. Really well done.

I work in Uptown. This is needed. The place is a traffic choked nightmare all day.

By: Anon22

Anon22 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 04:55:53 +0000

Well for park and ride users, a route that directly connects into a BRT line would be better than LRT since it would be one less transfer than riding in on the bus and then waiting for a LRT.

So the real question is who the line is ideally for — people in to shop from other places closer to town, or suburbanites who work in the area?

By: Stephen

Stephen — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 03:58:08 +0000

I believe it’s primarily a question of population density (PD) and not so much of lack of public transport. We just don’t have enough PD yet in uptown or in downtown. Consider cities like Rio, Buenos Aires, NYC, and Madrid where the PD is high and you see public transportation options, including taxis, everywhere. Correlation doesn’t imply causality but in this case there is a link IMHO. Another factor which is beginning to be addressed is the homeless situation in the city, the root cause of which is quite complex I’m sure. In my opinion, it is a sad reality but this perceived security issue tends to have the effect on people to opt for driving to the businesses instead of walking or taking local transport options. Once in a car, it is then very easy not to go to a local business but to a more distant one. Lastly, the issue of street parking needs to be considered. We tend to have extremely wide streets in downtown with limited or no street parking though $10 per car parking lots are commonplace. To be sure, it’s a complex problem but ultimately not an intractable one.

By: M2M

M2M — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 00:31:47 +0000

I like this idea. My husband works in the Galleria AND takes the park and ride (gasp) to/from Kingsland, (double gasp) which I believe is a newly introduced route. It’s been a wonderful alternative to driving for him. His only complaint, as always, is the increasingly massive congestion in the Galleria that will only get worse. If there were HOV access lanes and more bus routes, Galleria traffic would not have nearly the congestion it does today and encourage more people to take public transportation.