Tag Archives: Metro

A message from Metro

Posted on December 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Spotted by me at the Smithlands light rail station: I believe this subject came up in my interview with Gilbert Garcia and Christoph Spieler but figured it deserved its own mention regardless. Expect the Board to explore further changes to … Continue reading →

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Interview with Gilbert Garcia and Christof Spieler

Posted on December 20, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

To say the least, 2010 has been an eventful year for Metro. I think everyone would agree that in many ways, the agency is in stronger shape and is headed in a better direction than it was at this time … Continue reading →

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Metro reaches settlement with CAF

Posted on December 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Fresh from the inbox: The Metropolitan Transit Authority announced today that it has reached a settlement with CAF USA, Inc. (a subsidiary of the Spanish Firm Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, S.A.) over two disputed contracts for the construction of … Continue reading →

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Moving on at Metro

Posted on December 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Frank Wilson is gone at Metro, and others are following him out the door. “A number of the senior appointees that Frank Wilson brought in are no longer here,” said George Greanias, Wilson’s successor, but he did not describe it … Continue reading →

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You need more than more miles to get more riders

Posted on December 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The new 28-mile Green Line in Dallas has begun full service, and it is expected to add about 30,000 daily boardings, bringing DART’s total rail ridership to about 90,000 per day. That’s for 72 miles of rail lines, which is … Continue reading →

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In which I become a bit player in a Metro lawsuit

Posted on December 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

So I got an email on Friday from Chron reporter Mike Snyder, asking me if I had done an interview with former Metro Chair David Wolff. Apparently, there were some new documents filed in the lawsuit against Metro by its … Continue reading →

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Metro tries again with Airport Direct service

Posted on December 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Metro will lower the fare and add more downtown stops for its Airport Direct service in an attempt to make it stop losing so much money. The 52-passenger bus currently averages two riders per trip from its passenger plaza at … Continue reading →

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The Bill King alternative to light rail

Posted on November 19, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

In case you missed it, Bill King wrote a column lat week that was based on an email exchange he had with me awhile back in which he laid out his alternate vision for what Metro ought to be doing. … Continue reading →

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Metro to try mediation with CAF

Posted on October 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever works. The Metropolitan Transit Authority plans to negotiate the cancellation of a $331 million contract with a Spanish rail car manufacturer through mediation, local transit bosses said Wednesday. That is why, despite the agency’s announced intention to cancel the … Continue reading →

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Metro’s Airport Direct service

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The good news is that the people who use Metro’s Airport Direct service from downtown to IAH really like it. The bad news is that not nearly enough people use it. The scarcity of passengers on the Airport Direct service … Continue reading →

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Feds reject CAF’s review request

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I smell a lawsuit coming. Federal officials on Friday rejected a Metro contractor’s bid to preserve its $330 million deal to supply rail cars, setting the stage for possible litigation over the soon-to-be-canceled contract. Dorval R. Carter Jr., the chief … Continue reading →

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Metro takes a step forward on advertising

Posted on October 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

For its 2011 fiscal year budget, Metro is taking a tentative step forward on allowing ads to be placed on its buses. Metro is considering placing ads on buses to generate revenue (page 37). George Greanias, president and chief executive … Continue reading →

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How Metro nearly cost itself $900 million

Posted on September 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It’s an impressive feat, for some sense of the word. In the first months of the procurement process, documents show, [former Metro CEO Frank] Wilson intended to use local rather than federal funds to buy the light-rail vehicles, possibly in … Continue reading →

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CAF asks FTA to reconsider

Posted on September 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t know how much good this will do them, but I guess it can’t hurt to try. Metro’s rail car contractor formally asked federal officials Friday to reconsider their decision that the company’s $330 million contract must be canceled in … Continue reading →

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Metro responds to FTA, and CAF responds to Metro

Posted on September 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Over the weekend, Metro posted a letter from CEO George Greanias to the FTA in response to the findings of the FTA from their investigation into Buy America compliance. Basically, Metro says they agree with the FTA’s findings, have issued … Continue reading →

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Add another year to the construction schedule

Posted on September 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Metro may have dodged a bullet with the FTA, but they’re still going to feel the effect of the federal agency’s decision in the Buy America case. The Metropolitan Transit Authority today retracted its acting president’s statement that the agency … Continue reading →

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FTA gives Metro a second chance

Posted on September 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

That sound you hear is a bullet whizzing past Metro’s ear Metro violated federal laws in making a deal with a Spanish company to purchase 103 rail cars, and must re-bid the purchase in order to qualify for a $900 … Continue reading →

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Metro to hire Greanias as CEO

Posted on September 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Metro board appears poised to name interim CEO George Greanias as its permanent CEO. The comments by board chairman Gilbert Garcia came after Greanias outlined his plans for fundamental changes in the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s culture and values, making … Continue reading →

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More on Metro’s finances

Posted on August 31, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron reports on Metro’s current financial situation. I think you can largely sum this up as follows: “Clearly, Metro is burning through its cash,” said Steven Craig, a University of Houston economics professor specializing in public finance. Craig said … Continue reading →

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Metro’s cash crunch

Posted on August 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From last week, a story about how times are tough at Metro. Facing a $49 million budget shortfall this fiscal year, the Metropolitan Transit Authority has begun to slow construction on two light rail lines and may embrace more drastic … Continue reading →

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Commuter rail along US 90A

Posted on August 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s an update on a piece of the 2003 Metro Solutions referendum that has been largely quiescent till now, the proposed commuter rail line from the Fannin South station to Fort Bend County. Though efforts soon stalled after a 2003 … Continue reading →

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Metro gets record of decision for University line

Posted on July 31, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Very good news. Metro has received word that final approval has been given concerning the environmental review process for the University light-rail line. “Houston clearly needs the University Line as an East-West transit artery,” said George Greanias, action president and … Continue reading →

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DA clears Metro

Posted on July 27, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. Months after prosecutors took boxes of documents from Metro’s downtown headquarters and experts examined the agency’s computers, the investigation into allegations that Metropolitan Transit Authority administrators illegally destroyed public documents has ended, Metro officials said today. In a letter … Continue reading →

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Metro finance update

Posted on July 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

What’s going on with Metro these days? Although leaders of the region’s transit agency are confident that they will secure $900 million in federal funding to build more light rail lines in Houston, they have begun discussing fare increases and … Continue reading →

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Metro lets more bikes on the trains

Posted on July 20, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve mentioned the efforts by BikeHouston and other activists to expand bicycle access to light rail trains. This past week, they scored a victory on that front. Bikes are still barred during peak travel hours in the morning and afternoon, … Continue reading →

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Another setback for DART

Posted on June 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

More bad news from Dallas. Dallas Area Rapid Transit can’t afford to build light-rail service to D/FW International Airport by 2013 as it has long said it would, the agency’s chief financial officer said Tuesday. The news comes as a … Continue reading →

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Metro working on its critics

Posted on June 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Now that it has much of its litigation-related unpleasantness behind it, Metro is working on improving its image, both with the public as a whole and with its more persistent critics. The need to re-brand Metro as an institution worthy … Continue reading →

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Inducing demand: Not just for misguided highway projects in the exurbs

Posted on June 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This article about the construction of the North Line demonstrates that development follows transit projects, too. One of the biggest real estate projects in the area is the former FedEx site on Irvington. It was conceived in 2002 to address … Continue reading →

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The Metro settlement agreement

Posted on June 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I presume we’ll get some more details in the morning, but for now I wanted to highlight one aspect of the story of Metro’s settlement agreement with Lloyd Kelley. The suit accused Metro and several of its top officials, including … Continue reading →

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Federal funds for transit shortfalls proposed

Posted on May 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This is a good idea. Transit agencies forced to raise fares or cut service to close budget gaps would be eligible for $2 billion in emergency operating funds under legislation unveiled today by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-CT) … Continue reading →

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Grand jury hears Metro document shredding evidence

Posted on May 27, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Obviously, the District Attorney’s office is farther along in their investigation than I thought. A courthouse appearance today by Frank J. Wilson, the former Metropolitan Transit Authority president accused of destroying public documents, provided the first indication that prosecutors are … Continue reading →

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More on the Metro lawsuit settlement

Posted on May 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the Metro document shredding lawsuit has been pulled from the court docket in anticipation of a settlement agreement. The Chron has more on what that settlement agreement might entail. The proposed settlement of an open-records lawsuit against … Continue reading →

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More “Buy America” complications

Posted on May 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the “It’s always something with Metro” department: The Federal Transit Administration plans to deny the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s request for a waiver from Buy America rules in connection with [a $15.8 million radio equipment] radio purchase from Motorola, FTA … Continue reading →

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One Metro lawsuit pulled from court docket

Posted on May 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Looks promising. Metro expects to reach a settlement soon in an open-records lawsuit that triggered a series of accusations and investigations that gripped the transit agency for months, board chairman Gilbert Garcia said. The trial of the lawsuit by attorney … Continue reading →

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