Tag Archives: BRT

Maybe the Inner Katy Line is only mostly dead

Posted on September 15, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

That’s one takeaway from this. Houston transit officials are approaching the next few months as a transitional period, as they assess basic improvements, the demands of travel and the expectations of riders eager for better service. “We are going to … Continue reading →

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Metro to kill Inner Katy line

Posted on August 30, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is such bullshit. The Metropolitan Transit Authority will further reduce its previously planned bus rapid transit efforts while boosting police presence on its routes and increasing its investment in so-called microtransit under its proposed fiscal 2025 budget. The draft … Continue reading →

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Of course the I-10 project will cost more than expected

Posted on August 9, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The sun rises in the east, water is wet, etc etc etc. Lifting Interstate 10 out of White Oak Bayou’s floodway is poised to cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars more than anticipated, as bids to build the project … Continue reading →

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More on the I-10 project and “No Higher No Wider”

Posted on July 28, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This story is primarily about the effect of the proposed I-10 widening/elevating would have on the Cottage Grove neighborhood, which was previously split in two by the highway’s construction in 1968. That’s all worth reading, but I’m focusing on a … Continue reading →

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San Antonio gets BRT (*) funds

Posted on July 14, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

At least someone is moving forward with a big transit project. U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, whose 28th district stretches from Laredo to South and East San Antonio, has secured $110 million in federal funding for VIA’s first rapid transit route. … Continue reading →

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Metro officially fails to follow through on the Universities Line

Posted on June 29, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Cowards. Transit officials received a busload of criticism Thursday for the decision to pause the long-planned east-west spine of rapid transit in the region, with some critics questioning whether the decision was an attempt to kill the line altogether. “I … Continue reading →

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Metro to fund RYDE services

Posted on June 27, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Okay, fine. Transit officials are poised to pick up the tab for another six months of funding on-demand rides around Second Ward and Third Ward. If approved by the Metropolitan Transit Authority board on Thursday, the agency would spend $216,000 … Continue reading →

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One more time for keeping the Universities line going

Posted on June 25, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Raj Mankad is a Chron editorial board member and a neighbor of mine, who once took public transit from Houston to Galveston to prove it could be done. He has now taken to the op-ed pages in favor of not … Continue reading →

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LINK Houston advocates for the Universities line

Posted on June 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

From Sunday’s op-ed section, three leaders of LINK Houston advocate for the Universities BRT line as promised in the 2019 Metro referendum. This is the part that is most of interest to me: There’s a lot on the line. If … Continue reading →

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Ellis requests full Metro board vote on halting Universities BRT

Posted on June 23, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s at least put it on the record. Concerned the University Corridor rapid transit line project could be delayed for years, Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis on Friday called on Metro to move forward with the voter-approved project and hold … Continue reading →

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Metro officially puts Universities BRT line in the freezer

Posted on June 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Goddammit. The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County will not pursue the University Corridor bus rapid transit line, a core element of the MetroNext program, delaying the project indefinitely. During a Tuesday meeting of the board of directors’ Strategic Planning … Continue reading →

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Mayor criticized for Gulfton comments

Posted on June 14, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Community Leaders Demand Apology from Mayor Whitmire for Offensive Remarks About Gulfton Houston, TX – A coalition of over 20 community leaders and organizations has released a letter (see attached PDF) calling on Mayor Whitmire to retract … Continue reading →

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Metro Chair seeks to nullify 2019 election

Posted on June 1, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I’m so mad about this I’m having a hard time seeing straight. Metro is beginning to steer in a different direction under Mayor John Whitmire and his appointed chair of the transit agency, pulling away from a planned expansion of … Continue reading →

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We need to pay more attention to the I-10 construction proposals

Posted on May 9, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

By which I mostly mean I need to pay more attention to them, because they sound terrible. Between the shrill of large trucks barreling down Interstate 10 – when only the whoosh of cars dominates the din – Matt Tetlow … Continue reading →

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Yeah, it looks like we do have to worry about Metro going backwards

Posted on May 6, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Transportation advocacy group LINK Houston, in its annual “Equity in Transit” report released this week, asked the region’s public transit provider to accelerate a $7.5 billion plan that was backed by Harris … Continue reading →

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On increasing ridership at Metro

Posted on May 1, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I’m open to hearing more. The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County is under new leadership, but the goal of increasing ridership remains the same. While the number of riders steadily has increased across the system since the peak of … Continue reading →

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Amtrak pushes for Texas Central

Posted on April 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I like the sound of that. Booming demand, Texas’s rapidly expanding population and growing political will have converged to create the right environment to move high-speed rail ahead, Amtrak leadership said Tuesday. Andy Byford, Amtrak’s senior vice president of high-speed … Continue reading →

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Mayor Whitmire appoints a new Metro Chair

Posted on February 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Congratulations and welcome aboard. Mayor John Whitmire on Tuesday announced CenterPoint Energy executive Elizabeth Brock would lead the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s board of directors. If approved, Brock would be the first Hispanic woman to lead the transit agency. “She brings … Continue reading →

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I-10 elevation update

Posted on January 30, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

From the Woodland Heights Civic Association January newsletter: I-10 Heights to I-45 Project Update: Community Advocacy Leads to Significant Changes The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has announced modifications to its $347 million plan to elevate a section of Interstate … Continue reading →

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Gulfton BRT route approved

Posted on August 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Moving forward. Long-sought improvements to transit service in Gulfton – arguably among the Houston region’s most transit-starved areas – have an official line on the map, though rapid service remains years away. Metropolitan Transit Authority officials on Thursday approved the … Continue reading →

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Squeezing in the Gulfton BRT extension

Posted on July 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Hope they find a way everyone can live with to make this work. Bringing better bus service to one of Houston’s most transit-dependent and oft-ignored areas has Metro officials balancing, yet again, how best to upgrade service without upsetting advocates and drivers. Approval … Continue reading →

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B-Cycle hits the brakes

Posted on April 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Unfortunate. Hopes for a much-needed infusion of cash from a new partnership with Metro have yet to be fulfilled, leading Houston Bike Share to warn users that prices will increase and the number of available stations will shrink, starting May 1. The nonprofit … Continue reading →

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Metro approves University BRT route

Posted on April 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Still a lot of work to be done before any actual construction can begin. Metro officials on Wednesday approved a path for the 25.3 mile University Corridor in a rare split vote that keeps the region’s largest bus rapid transit project on track … Continue reading →

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Preferred path decision for University BRT line delayed

Posted on March 26, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Still working out some issues with the community. A decision on the preferred path for Houston’s longest bus rapid transit line will wait a couple weeks longer following community outcry regarding a planned railroad overpass. Metropolitan Transit Authority’s board of … Continue reading →

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Metro gets some BRT money

Posted on March 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Thank you, FTA, may we please have some more? Houston’s biggest bus rapid transit line, the planned University Corridor, is still on the drawing board, but already is drawing in federal funds. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, in a Thursday announcement, said … Continue reading →

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More on the state of B-Cycle

Posted on February 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I think they will come out of this in better shape, but change is always hard. In a sense, Maya Ford is just trying to get Houston Bike Share back in gear in the hope that it has a long … Continue reading →

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Metro approves initial takeover of B-Cycle

Posted on January 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I’m optimistic about this. The Metro board approved a six-to-nine month transition period where operations now overseen by the nonprofit Houston Bike Share will move into the transit agency. Officials said rolling the bike borrowing system into the transit made … Continue reading →

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Will Metro take over B-Cycle?

Posted on January 22, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I like the idea and hope Metro can really run with it. The Houston area’s biggest bus operator is considering getting in the bike business, infusing up to $500,000 into the city’s network of docked two-wheelers. Under the proposal, scheduled for a vote … Continue reading →

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So what’s the deal with that I-45 deal?

Posted on January 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Still to be determined. Houston, Harris County and the Texas Department of Transportation have an agreed path forward for rebuilding Interstate 45, and a lot of steps to get there. Details big and small remain works in progress and a … Continue reading →

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Shepherd/Durham construction update

Posted on November 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good long story in the Chron. When the workers clear — still months away — Shepherd and Durham, along with some major side streets, will be remade, and in many ways reformed. The streets, dual thoroughfares that funnel traffic between Memorial Drive and … Continue reading →

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The slow but steady march of Houston’s non-car transportation infrastructure

Posted on September 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good story. When he arrived in Houston two years ago, what David Fields saw belied what he had heard. The nation’s fourth-largest city has long been known as car-centric and geared toward commuting, with a web of wide freeways that … Continue reading →

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More on the planning for the University BRT line

Posted on August 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, Metro has to make some predictions about where transit will be needed. Building a line that goes through some of the densest parts of town probably helps with that. Metropolitan Transit Authority officials told voters in 2019 “we have … Continue reading →

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Time to meet the University Line BRT plans

Posted on July 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

A big step forward, but there are many miles yet to go. The biggest of Metro’s big bus offerings is about to turn from lines on a map to a full-fledged discussion for Houston residents, as transit officials prepare for … Continue reading →

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Metro approves I-10 Inner Katy BRT route

Posted on March 26, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Big step forward. Metro officials Thursday settled on the route for a busway along Interstate 10 that they predict will improve transit for urban and suburban travelers, whether they hop on board or not. The elevated busway planned along the … Continue reading →

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