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March 27, 2005, 10:12PM

BUS STOP

Medical Center transit center to get escalators

Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

Bus riders transferring to trains at the Texas Medical Center Transit Center will no longer have to walk up and down stairs to make the connection. ADVERTISEMENT

The Metropolitan Transit Authority Board of Directors approved a contract Thursday with Satterfield & Pontikes Construction to install escalators at the transit center's skybridge, which connects bus loading areas with the rail station in the center of Fannin.

Metro had planned to modify the skybridge in future years but said heavy ridership through the medical center justifies moving the escalator installation to this year. The $2.6 million project, 80 percent of which will be reimbursed by the federal government, is scheduled for completion in October.

This contract also includes modifying the rail station to accommodate three-car trains. The Main Street line was built to handle only two-car trains because the short block lengths downtown will not accommodate anything longer.

Bryan Pennington, Metro's vice president of planning, engineering and construction, said it makes sense to modify the rail platforms now rather than having to do another retrofit should three-car shuttle trains ever be considered.

Metro bus passes available through online RideStore

No more need to stand in line at the grocery store to buy your Metro bus pass.

The transit authority has opened an online RideStore at www.ridemetro.org. Riders may purchase monthly and yearly passes plus Stored Value Cards. Payment is by Visa, MasterCard or Discover, and passes are mailed out within one business day. There is a $1 surcharge to cover shipping costs and processing.

Monthly and yearly passes are valid on light rail trains, but customers who only ride the train should not buy them online because they must first be validated on a bus. Metro's new fare-payment system

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YAY! When I visited the Med Center, it took me a VERY long time to climb those stairs, cross the bridge, and get to the other side. Hopefully, this will help speed things up.

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  • 2 years later...
  • The title was changed to METRO Transit Center- TMC
  • 4 months later...
  • 6 months later...

The escalator going up to the skybridge has been sealed up with drywall.  

Anyone know why? Is this in anticipation of MD Anderson’s new South of Holcombe campus?

I believe the escalators have been out of service for a year. Maybe instead of fixing them, or having the public question, they just sealed them off?

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