Jump to content

illusionescape

Full Member
  • Posts

    82
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by illusionescape

  1. Looks like there are plans in the works for a 3-mile extension of Spur 5 from its existing terminus just south of UH campus. Extension would take it past I-610 down to Bellfort. Project includes 4 direct connectors between I-610 & Spur 5. Work wouldn’t start until 2025. Route won’t be redesignated as SH 35 until future extensions take it past the Beltway.

     

    https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/transportation/article/Long-sought-Alvin-Freeway-could-start-with-Spur-5-13656687.php

  2. On 9/19/2018 at 10:48 AM, rechlin said:

    SkylineView, "drag" it out of purgatory is literally correct!  All you have to do is drag it from that linked page and into the post editor and it will work.  Like this:

     

    http://i1241.photobucket.com/albums/gg515/SkylineView/image2_zpsym0hihgp.jpeg

    I thought the bus lanes were supposed to feature a strip of grass down the center. Metro’s website shows the renderings/schematics with grass. They even refer to it as a “green guideway”. The photo above looks like it’s solid concrete.

     

    https://www.ridemetro.org/Pages/UptownBRT.aspx

  3. But what kind of overpass?

    I heard they were going for the rail only option, then last night on the news, they approved a rail and traffic one.

    Board recommended overpass design with rail and one lane of vehicular traffic. Other vehicular lane will be at grade. METRO will negotiate with city council to aide with financials for this design. If by summer nothing has come to fruition, then METRO will proceed with overpass design with only rail (2 vehicular lanes at grade).

  4. no way it takes 31 months to design/build that bridge....bridge engineer here....are they going to run a separate train on the east portion?

     

    No plans for separate trains running on the east portion according to the Green Line office representative I spoke to. The rails and stations will sit there unused until the bridge is completed.

  5. So since the Hughes Underpass won't be ready when the rest of the line completes construction next year, what is the plan? Run the light rail service all the way to the Altic/Howard Highes Station, then transfer all the passengers to bus to continue on down Harrisburg to the Magnolia Park Transit Center? Or something else?

  6. All/Mod,

    Perhaps I have missed the thread else ware and the search let me down but what is the buzz on the Fingers Furniture location across the Freeway from UofH? This is a large tract of land just south of downtown next to our largest University so what will it become, any insight?

    Apologies if this is being discussed else ware,

    Scharpe St Guy

    I think it is supposed to be converted into an Ashley Furniture, if I'm not mistaken.

  7. From the folks I've talked to, it sounds like the top priority is to upgrade the sidewalks along Harrisburg Road. There are a few other streets feeding the light rail stations that they have identified as candidates for major streetscape improvements, but I don't know what their funding priority will be.

    Will the sidewalks upgrade be done at the same time as the light rail construction? Or is it another one of those "long term projects"?

  8. Does anyone know if METRO plans to improve sidewalks in the general vicinity (~5-10 minute walk) of each METRORail station to help feed pedestrian traffic and those living/working near each station? I will be able to use the Bastrop Station once the line is up and running, but the sidewalk route for me to the station is horrible. Many areas don't even have sidewalks.

  9. Past Drennan it was already converted into the Harrisburg-Sunset Rails-to-Trails bicycle path: http://www.publicworks.houstontx.gov/bikeways/harrisburg.htm Commerce is a bikeway, so when the rest of the rail is removed, I would like to see the trail finished into downtown.

    Hey kylejack, where is this bike path that you're talking about? Looks nice from the photos. It actually runs on Commerce? Or is it on Harrisburg? I can't tell from the website description.

  10. The only work done so far has been utility work. So there is not really much to see. I drive down Harrisburg almost daily and all there is too see is some big orange drums on the side of the road, a few segments of new asphalt, and a big display sign reading "Rail construction ahead". The actual construction of the line (repaving road, laying tracks, adding stations, etc) hasn't started because they have yet to sign the contract with Parsons.

  11. There is a freight rail line that runs down the center of Commerce Street between St. Charles Street and Palmer Street. Does it even get used anymore? I don't think so. But it is an annoyance driving down the street since it creates a very uneven roadway for drivers. There is a lot of development on this street with the Tricon Home development and the Urban Lofts Development. Anyone know if the East End plans on removing the tracks?

  12. Great, thanks for the reply. If anyone has any inside info on the timeline for each stage in opening the rail lines I would love to know. Maybe someone can ask during the meto online chat if they get a chance...

    METRO had planned to pay out of pocket for the East End and Uptown lines. However, since the Uptown line cannot function without the University line, which is government funded, construction on the line cannot be started. The East End line ties in directly with the existing system ("Red Line"), so that is one reason why construction on the line has already started. If government funding for the other lines somehow falls through, the East End line will function properly.

  13. Has anyone visited the METRO Solutions office in the Las Palmas shopping center on Harrisburg? I haven't been but I was wondering if there was any good info there about the route (i.e., info that's not provided on METRO's website).

  14. I think METRO picked the best possible east-west route in the East End. I've traveled down other routes like Navigation and Canal and they just don't have the potential that Harrisburg does. There is a new CVS Pharmacy going up on Harrisburg, plus there is quite a bit of restaurants/shopping near the Magnolia Transit Center already. Also, there are two new shopping centers with Las Palmas and the one with the AutoZone. In a way, the METRO line will tie in with another mode of transportation... international bus lines. There are two bus stations near the end of the line that provide bus trips to Mexico.

  15. Since I live very close to the beginning of the East End Line, I decided to take a drive down the entire route and film it to give those who live outside the area an idea of the line. It starts near the Lofts at the Ballpark, which is where the Bastrop Station will be located. For those who want to see what construction has taken place, you will see big orange drums in the middle of the video. That's the location of the construction so far. Also, I passed the Las Palmas Shopping Center, which is where the METRO Solutions office is for the East End Line. I finish the video at the Magnolia Transit Center Station.

    I uploaded the video to YouTube. Check it out here...

×
×
  • Create New...