j_cuevas713 Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 I'm actually going to test the the new network whenever possible. I'm even going the extreme route and parking my car at a park n ride and taking the bus all the way to work into town! If I need to get anywhere in town? Using the bus. Should be an interesting experiment!I'm going to do the same, probably Friday Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 I'm going to try that the rest of this week - free rides are cheaper than wear and tear on my car Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 In downtown hearing a mix of confusion and positive reaction. Also the trains are packed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
79ta Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 I ride the 85 (which is normally pretty crowded) and transfer at the NW TC on to the 131 (which has morphed in to the 162 among others). I experienced a little confusion at the TC because the bus lanes were reorganized and also heard two separate drivers say they were trying to learn the new routes. All in all, the changes shaved off around 10 minutes from my round trip. Overall, I'd grade it a solid A. The increased peak frequency is certainly nice and a free ride is always welcome. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luminare Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 FYI the park & rides are NOT FREE! Learned that the hard way this morning! It was weird because yesterday I was able to get on park & rides without a problem. Then while trying to make a connection with the 283 bus to greenway (which is a park & ride route) this morning I was pretty much thrown out of the bus. I then read the fine print on the website and ONE new source that park & rides were not free this week.... Almost no news sites mentioned this. All the big banners that say free rides don't mention this. On local buses it says local and rail, but I assumed it would say that because its a local bus/rail. On the dang park and ride buses they have the free ride banners on them!!! Holy crap metro! I honestly don't understand why park and rides aren't free this week. That's the dumbest thing I have ever seen. They had a way of potentially getting more people to ride their service into town, but instead the don't do that! That is beyond stupid! Now that I have that out of the way....Everything else is a solid A so far. Lightrail has gotten a boost in service/more trains on the lines. The routes make more sense and easier to understand and read. The interactive map on the website is excellent. The local routes that I have ridden (especially the frequent flyer ones) have been very quick. The park and ride.....come on Metro that was just dumb! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
totheskies Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 Al Jazeera America In Houston, the wheels on the bus go (almost) all through the town HOUSTON — On Saturday night hundreds of transit workers criss-crossed Houston ripping off plastic bags that had covered new bus signs at 10,450 stops.Houston has done something that few cities undertake. On Sunday morning, millions awoke to a completely reinvented bus system.At the downtown transit center, touch screen bus maps oriented riders to the new route. In the early morning, several passengers lined up at kiosks to find out how to get around on the redesigned system. A Metro staff member noticed a map of the old system still hanging in a glass case, unhooked it and rolled it up. All morning excited volunteers, staff and board members walked around giving directions and calling in small tweaks to the new bus system that has been two years in the making.Houston has ballooned into the fourth-largest city in the U.S. (and the most ethnically diverse city in the country), with a bus system mapped in the 1970s. The population has almost doubled, but the bus map had stayed roughly the same. Like many U.S. cities, Houston no longer has one traditional city center but is made up of several densely populated urban hubs, and an increasing number of people live and work where the bus lines did not reach. Instead of changing the system piece by piece, Houston decided to reimagine the entire network from scratch. It's an unprecedented change, and cities across the country are watching Houston to see what happens. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 They hadn't redone the bus network since the 70s? Even during the 80s with the big oil boom? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samagon Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 after the negative spin the media has put on the new routes, I'm glad to hear stories of people with reduced commutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeopleAreStrange Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 (edited) Based on the online schedule, looks like travel time on the bus route I sometimes ride has been reduced from 60 mins to 40 mins. However, there are many complaints about increased travel time on Twitter. Edited August 21, 2015 by PeopleAreStrange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 I've been riding the bus the last couple of days. Yesterday, didn't wait for a bus or train at all (good thing since it was pouring), but it did take a while longer than the old bus that I could have taken to work. But I never took that bus because it left at 7:30 and I am not a morning person >.<Overall, I think this is a good start - frequency matters, but now they need to work on travel time. Once you get off a park and ride bus, your average speed drops off a cliff, and once you get off the train, your speed is about the same as biking with all the stops and (in my case) a mile deviation to a transit center right before my stop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_cuevas713 Posted August 22, 2015 Share Posted August 22, 2015 Testing the system today with my gf, going from the car parked at the Galleria and walking Uptown and then hitting Montrose, then Downtown to TMC and back to The Village and back... wish me luck guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 It's concerning we haven't heard from him for 3 days... 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Harrow Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 It's concerning we haven't heard from him for 3 days... I'm DYING lmao 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 It's concerning we haven't heard from him for 3 days... Which brings up today's earworm... You are welcome. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_cuevas713 Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 (edited) Hahaha sorry guys... I gotta say that I was very impressed... my gf and I parked at the Macy's garage and did some walking up and down Post Oak... we checked out the new Whole Foods and ate... then we caught the 33 back to West. and Post Oak and then caught the 82 to Montrose... did some antique shopping... then caught the 82 to Midtown at Smith and Elgin... from there we caught the train downtown and watched the Stros till about 8ish... caught the train back to midtown, just because... and the 82 back to the garage... I gotta say that overall the buses were very frequent and great on travel time. The longest we waited was about 7 mintues. I'm def considering taking the bus more often. Still not familiar with other routes but I will try others soon and get a feel for things. Edited August 26, 2015 by j_cuevas713 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparrow Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 When should we expect solid data on how this is doing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADCS Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 When should we expect solid data on how this is doing? I'd guess end of quarter, if not end of year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryDierker Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 http://www.houstonpress.com/news/no-easy-ride-what-using-metros-new-bus-network-is-like-in-a-low-income-community-7727049 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 Wheeler station is very busy now. I think this is due to the amount of buses that are feeding into it. It has surpassed downtown transit center in my opinion. This could be a good thing because it's by far the most unsafe station on the original red line. More eyes are better. Probably has some competition with a couple of the ones on the red line extension though. I think the stations near shelters are the ones with issues but what can you really do about that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 Wheeler station is very busy now. I think this is due to the amount of buses that are feeding into it. It has surpassed downtown transit center in my opinion. This could be a good thing because it's by far the most unsafe station on the original red line. More eyes are better. Probably has some competition with a couple of the ones on the red line extension though. I think the stations near shelters are the ones with issues but what can you really do about that?One solution is having a stronger Metro police presence at problem stations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 One solution is having a stronger Metro police presence at problem stations.Seems like common sense but metro doesn't do that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_cuevas713 Posted September 6, 2015 Share Posted September 6, 2015 (edited) http://www.houstonpress.com/news/no-easy-ride-what-using-metros-new-bus-network-is-like-in-a-low-income-community-7727049Does anyone on this forum know of someone affected by the new routes, especially those in low income areas? Edited September 6, 2015 by j_cuevas713 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moore713 Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 I stay in greenpoint were I once caught the 102 and could be downtown in about 30 mins the new route (6). Takes well over a gr now..My mom who lives in third ward and works in Sunnyside. .once caught 1 bus now needs two and has to walk half a mile.My aunt who once had to catch 2 bus now needs 3..Hearing Simiar stories from regular rider Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 I stay in greenpoint were I once caught the 102 and could be downtown in about 30 mins the new route (6). Takes well over a gr now..My mom who lives in third ward and works in Sunnyside. .once caught 1 bus now needs two and has to walk half a mile.My aunt who once had to catch 2 bus now needs 3..Hearing Simiar stories from regular rider The 102 still runs from Greenspoint to downtown. If it doesn't stop near where you stay, you could probably save a lot of time by taking the 6 to Greenspoint Transit Center and then switch to the 102 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moore713 Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 Yea thinking I'm just going to make the trek to the 102. ..the 6 for me is just a massive waste of time..maybe it works for others thou.Shame really were the 102 use to drop me off right in front of my apt at night now I'm have to walk thou , a bunch of dealers , and gangs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted September 10, 2015 Share Posted September 10, 2015 I think 102 runs more frequently than before now at least.I've heard of a lot of people having transfers added now that weren't there before, either another bus or the train, however I've also heard the buses run much more frequently for the most part. Once the post oak bus lines get made I can see some more changes coming, more buses feeding into that. And university line down the line would change everything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
79ta Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 (edited) pretty cool video about the new network from pbs http://video.pbs.org/viralplayer/2365581096 edit: i can't figure out how to embed the video Edited October 14, 2015 by 79ta 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_cuevas713 Posted October 17, 2015 Share Posted October 17, 2015 Great video! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 https://twitter.com/christofspieler/status/684377993448394752 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFootsSocks Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 Wow that's a really great sign for METRO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestUdweller Posted January 8, 2016 Share Posted January 8, 2016 Fantastic, I honestly have never used the bus before but am intrigued to try sometime. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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