METRORail Red Line

[Slick Vik]

So, you've never see a car cross under the Pierce?

 

I'm talking about pedestrians.

[IronTiger]

I'm talking about pedestrians.

I don't think it's wise for pedestrians to cross directly on the tracks.

I've driven the route of the red line and not had any of the problems you claim to have. The Pierce doesn't prevent anyone from crossing underneath, but other than to and from the Greyhound station, it's rare to see a soul crossing underneath it, day or night.

The point was driving east-west, not north-south. Of course you wouldn't have problems if you were heading north-south.

It is a barrier. Not exaggerated at all.

Looking objectively, the light rail is a physical barrier, while the freeway is a psychological barrier. Psychological things can be overcome.

[Slick Vik]

I don't think it's wise for pedestrians to cross directly on the tracks.

The point was driving east-west, not north-south. Of course you wouldn't have problems if you were heading north-south.

Looking objectively, the light rail is a physical barrier, while the freeway is a psychological barrier. Psychological things can be overcome.

 

1. You have to sometimes, at crossings of course, but even then you walk across tracks.

 

2. Even if you go east west on a north south line, you probably cross once. Is that one crossing so unbelievably inconvenient?

 

3. I don't think light rail is a physical barrier, if anything it attracts pedestrians and development around it, while the freeway is basically a barrier between two areas of town, and scares of 99% of pedestrians.

[IronTiger]

1. You have to sometimes, at crossings of course, but even then you walk across tracks.

 

2. Even if you go east west on a north south line, you probably cross once. Is that one crossing so unbelievably inconvenient?

 

3. I don't think light rail is a physical barrier, if anything it attracts pedestrians and development around it, while the freeway is basically a barrier between two areas of town, and scares of 99% of pedestrians.

If the Pierce Freeway's time from build to present is any indication, I'd say development did quite well for it. About that "99%", that's hyperbole (better than admitting it's a fabricated statistic), and frankly, there's not a lot of need to cross the Pierce anyway, which is why most people tend to avoid it. You mentioned the Greyhound Station, but if you look on a map there's very little in terms of shops, restaurants, and bars (mostly service-oriented establishments, oh, and a McDonald's) on both sides of the freeway.

However, the Pierce really isn't a fair comparison to the light rail anyway, since the parts of town they're in are substantially different.

[Slick Vik]

If the Pierce Freeway's time from build to present is any indication, I'd say development did quite well for it. About that "99%", that's hyperbole (better than admitting it's a fabricated statistic), and frankly, there's not a lot of need to cross the Pierce anyway, which is why most people tend to avoid it. You mentioned the Greyhound Station, but if you look on a map there's very little in terms of shops, restaurants, and bars (mostly service-oriented establishments, oh, and a McDonald's) on both sides of the freeway.

However, the Pierce really isn't a fair comparison to the light rail anyway, since the parts of town they're in are substantially different.

 

There is more potential without a Pierce Elevated than with it.

Edited December 23, 2013 by Slick Vik

[IronTiger]

There is more potential without a Pierce Elevated than with it.

Sorry, if the Pierce Elevated disappeared tomorrow there would still be parking lots there for years to come (even in "$2800/month for single bedroom apartment" San Francisco, which has parts of the old Central Freeway visible even today), and by the time that changes, the real estate would've changed around it anyway. And the whole "if you build it, they will come" (or UNbuild it, in your case) hasn't really worked, especially since circa 2008.

Edited December 23, 2013 by IronTiger

[Slick Vik]

Sorry, if the Pierce Elevated disappeared tomorrow there would still be parking lots there for years to come (even in "$2800/month for single bedroom apartment" San Francisco, which has parts of the old Central Freeway visible even today), and by the time that changes, the real estate would've changed around it anyway. And the whole "if you build it, they will come" (or UNbuild it, in your case) hasn't really worked, especially since circa 2008.

 

Sorry, but those are simply your thoughts. There are two types of immediate benefits I could see.

 

1. Property taxes

2. Public green spaces

 

One would satisfy pedestrians and people who want a dynamic city and one would satisfy a city that has financial issues. And your last point is wrong, look at all the apartments going up in downtown and midtown as a result of light rail, and other apartments all over Montrose and EaDO as well. Things are changing.

[Ross]

Sorry, but those are simply your thoughts. There are two types of immediate benefits I could see.

 

1. Property taxes

2. Public green spaces

 

One would satisfy pedestrians and people who want a dynamic city and one would satisfy a city that has financial issues. And your last point is wrong, look at all the apartments going up in downtown and midtown as a result of light rail, and other apartments all over Montrose and EaDO as well. Things are changing.

 

The light rail in Midtown has been there for a long time. If anything, it hindered development. I do know that the light rail construction through Midtown did nothing to help development there. How do I know? I lived there through the construction. It was a mess. Combined with the massive road construction in Downtown at the time, development, and public life, came to a screeching halt.

 

If you want more public green spaces, they won't be paying property taxes.

 

[infinite_jim]

The Pierce spews air, light, and noise pollution 24/7, 365 days a year. Light-rail does none of that crap to the immediate environment in the scale and duration that the highway does. Google "micro-particulate pollution" = "cancer".

[IronTiger]

Dismisses my "thoughts", which are based on real observations of other cities, then fills posts with his own fantasies. Classic.

[IronTiger]

The Pierce spews air, light, and noise pollution 24/7, 365 days a year. Light-rail does none of that crap to the immediate environment in the scale and duration that the highway does. Google "micro-particulate pollution" = "cancer".

Comparing the Pierce to the light rail isn't fair, much like the Grand Parkway being compared to the Red Line extension is completely different. The talk was more on how much of a barrier each one was or was perceived to be. (Besides, the air/noise pollution is due to the cars, not the freeway)

[infinite_jim]

Yes, separate the cars from the highway, that'll learn'm. What world do you live in?

[IronTiger]

Yes, separate the cars from the highway, that'll learn'm. What world do you live in?

So if the Pierce doesn't have any cars on it, it still produces sound and air pollution, is that what you're saying?

[infinite_jim]

Trollworld apparently.

[Slick Vik]

Dismisses my "thoughts", which are based on real observations of other cities, then fills posts with his own fantasies. Classic.

 

Have you been to San Francisco? I have, just last week in fact. Ask people that lived there, or better yet see for yourself the results of the area that used to be a freeway. It's night and day. And that could happen here too.

[Slick Vik]

The light rail in Midtown has been there for a long time. If anything, it hindered development. I do know that the light rail construction through Midtown did nothing to help development there. How do I know? I lived there through the construction. It was a mess. Combined with the massive road construction in Downtown at the time, development, and public life, came to a screeching halt.

 

If you want more public green spaces, they won't be paying property taxes.

 

 

Hindered development? Look at the going up forum, see how much is being built specifically along the line, in midtown and downtown. It would have been done sooner but we got his with a recession. Screeching halt? Do you know when life comes to a screeching halt? When you have a civil war like Syria, please stop the hyperbole.

So if the Pierce doesn't have any cars on it, it still produces sound and air pollution, is that what you're saying?

 

Failure of reading comprehension.

[Howard Huge]

So if the Pierce doesn't have any cars on it, it still produces sound and air pollution, is that what you're saying?

Good point.

Also, if no one actually smokes crack, then no one gets high or has their lives ruined, therefore crack is harmless.

[mfastx]

If some folks are having trouble navigating Houston streets, I recommend Google maps, just type your destination in and it will show you the best way to go.  There are also other map services, such as Yahoo, MapQuest, etc. 

 

You'll live.

[Ross]

Hindered development? Look at the going up forum, see how much is being built specifically along the line, in midtown and downtown. It would have been done sooner but we got his with a recession. Screeching halt? Do you know when life comes to a screeching halt? When you have a civil war like Syria, please stop the hyperbole.

 

The light rail opened in January 2004. Here we are 10 years later, and we are just now getting some development. The recession didn't hit until 2008, what was going on between 2004 and then?

[Slick Vik]

The light rail opened in January 2004. Here we are 10 years later, and we are just now getting some development. The recession didn't hit until 2008, what was going on between 2004 and then?

The recession hit in 2007. There was some development along Main Street before that.

[lockmat]

Did anyone get a chance to ride it yet?

[Triton]

Did anyone get a chance to ride it yet?

 

Went on it yesterday (Sunday).

 

I live near this, close to Main & I-45. Gotta admit, it has such a gorgeous view of downtown and the rest of the cityscape when it goes over the train tracks at Fulton and Stokes St. Very impressive. It travels fairly fast in certain sections and it goes slow on Boundary St. Overall a good experience and I plan to get a Metro Q Card now.

 

Like I said in another thread, the section that feels un-Houston is the Burnett transit station. It feels like 100% true mass transit right there like I'm in DC or Chicago or something. It's elevated in this section and everything from the elevators to the platform look so modern. It's the best place to take a picture of the northside of downtown now, hands down. 

 

Almost everyone who got on were new and lived in the area. They weren't sure where the stops went. They would ask random questions like "Does this go to this restaurant or that bar?" The NUMBER ONE question I heard was "How does this stop? Am I supposed to push a button to stop at a station?" Really strange questions I guess but if you're new to the whole thing, it is understandable.

 

I actually had an elderly man who had a walker tell me that he was upset about light rail. He wanted his bus back because it stopped right next to his house. Now he had to walk slowly down several blocks to get to his place because that is the nearest station. And he said it's definitely not the best place to walk late at night either.

Edited December 24, 2013 by Triton

[DrLan34]

Burnett Transit Center

[brijonmang]

Burnett Transit Center

 

Clutch photo!! That is a great vantage point!  It's going to look that much better when 609 Main and the Market square buildings go up.  

[lockmat]

Thanks Triton, awesome stories. Isn't the Burnett station partly a huge bus stop for Metro buses? Or is that just an old site plan I saw. If so, I wouldn't think that'd feel very urban. Guess I'll need to go there myself.

[Slick Vik]

I took it last night had dinner at abasolo. I'll take it again soon to go to north line. Like triton said it's pretty cool to go up the bridge to Burnett. I hope some of the hardy yards plans come to fruition, or it becomes a transit hub for Amtrak and bullet train. Time will tell.

[LarryDierker]

I took it Sunday and grabbed a few phone pics.

 

IMAG0148 by Not.Larry.Dierker, on Flickr

 

IMAG0150 by Not.Larry.Dierker, on Flickr

 

IMAG0164 by Not.Larry.Dierker, on Flickr

 

IMAG0131 by Not.Larry.Dierker, on Flickr

 

IMAG0117 by Not.Larry.Dierker, on Flickr

 

IMAG0137 by Not.Larry.Dierker, on Flickr

 

IMAG0142 by Not.Larry.Dierker, on Flickr

[august948]

I took it last night had dinner at abasolo. I'll take it again soon to go to north line. Like triton said it's pretty cool to go up the bridge to Burnett. I hope some of the hardy yards plans come to fruition, or it becomes a transit hub for Amtrak and bullet train. Time will tell.

 

And you can take it to Walmart at Northline Commons as well.  Maybe it's not so bad after all.

 

[kylejack]

My personal experience is that the rail makes it very difficult to get from West of Main/Fulton where we live, to East of Main/Fulton, where my in-laws live.

 

 

Well, things change. Midtown had the same problem when rail was built. Then people just learned to go around on the through streets.

 

Traffic is not "messed up." It is simply re-routed.

Edited December 26, 2013 by kylejack

[kylejack]

The light rail opened in January 2004. Here we are 10 years later, and we are just now getting some development. The recession didn't hit until 2008, what was going on between 2004 and then?

 

A few supposed non-existent entities, according to you, off the top of my head:

 

2004 Post Midtown

2005 Tacos A Go Go, Julia's Bistro

2007 Reef

 

How did you live in Midtown during this period and not notice these openings?

Edited December 26, 2013 by kylejack