Triton

5 hours ago, BEES?! said:

I take any and everything posted on Reddit with a massive grain of salt.

I need to watch this board meeting to understand the context (And I've been so busy I haven't gotten around to it...), but it sounds like OP of that Reddit thread heard some anti-transit groups making comments on the floor at the meeting, the METRO board didn't reply to them, and so now s/he's extrapolating that to mean that the METRONext projects are in danger because the board's "silence [on the comments] speaks volumes". People are over there getting whipped up into a massive frenzy and you get the usual regurgitated Reddit talking points/ unhelpful sarcasm in the comments, and anyone with common sense gets buried in the hysterics.
🤦‍♂️
 

That's good to hear. I wasn't able to watch the board meeting so I just went with what they posted. So thanks.

I posted this over on Reddit. Interesting engagement.

This can have monumental consequences for Houston if we are seriously thinking of cancelling most parts of Metro Next. This region is growing whether Metro grows or not and we can't build unlimited highway lanes into the city. There comes a point where we need mass transit. This Reddit thread is very troubling:

10 hours ago, IntheKnowHouston said:

Great photos, @Triton. Also, when you can, please check your DM.

And I'll post the same thing publicly that I told you privately. I am not sure why Woodland Social is acting like this is in no way shape or form associated with White Oak Music Hall when it is 110% is and is even on the W2 Development website, the ones behind most of the development in this area. Not only are they associated with WOMH but they are coordinating with them on so many things. 

https://www.w2developmentpartners.com/current-developments

On 2/26/2024 at 9:40 PM, Zorin said:

I'm beginning to question the actual viability of this project, just off of what I see in northwest Harris County.  Playing around with alignment maps, it appears that the preferred route would roughly take it through the Dunham Pointe edition south of 290 and Mason Rd, then where the curve north starts, I'm having trouble discerning whether it would run through Grand Prairie or Jubilee.  This is not mentioning other developments occurring on the northern side of 290.  

I realize none of this is set in stone so to speak, but would developers really be pouring truckloads of cash into developing these areas, unless they KNEW their developments would not be subject to eminent domain?  Even if they did ED the land, they still have to pay fair market value, and going low at 250K per house, that will add up fast! 

With the amount of time that has passed since the original schematics, there is no doubt they will have to do a new study. It just is what it is. The Amtrak collaboration is still fresh so I would hold off before calling this fully doomed. 

On 2/21/2024 at 8:30 AM, samagon said:

a gas line broken, and a water line broken, it's as if some omnipotent being is telling us that the pedestrian improvements should have been kept.

all we need now is for the company doing the work to go bankrupt in the middle of the project for my bingo card to be filled.

(apparently my post was deleted during the site update). 

Honestly at this point if they unearthed a massive ancient pyramid under the road which forced Houston Ave to be closed permanently, I wouldn't even be surprised... 

On 2/17/2024 at 9:21 PM, Highrise Tower said:

I took this photo at dawn earlier in the week.  One of my favorite skyscrapers in Houston!

 

Did you mean to post this here?

I don't even remember police officers when they did this last time...

On 2/7/2024 at 6:44 PM, hindesky said:

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is seeking feedback from residents on its proposed improvement plans along Interstate 10 from Voss Road to I-45, also known as the Inner Katy Corridor. The project includes 6.3 miles of new managed lanes and expanding the current drainage system. Managed lanes typically include HOV lanes, toll lanes and bus lanes.

In a presentation released before an in-person public meeting at TxDOT Houston headquarters Thursday evening, the agency detailed two plans. The first is four elevated managed lanes with minimal right of way needed and no residential and business displacements. The second proposes four non-elevated lanes that would displace an estimated 52 residential structures and 30 businesses. 

TxDOT said that the project aims to reduce traffic in the area, citing this segment of I-10 as the 7th most congested roadway in Texas. In 2018, the Inner Katy Corridor saw 273,450 daily vehicles. In 2023, that number grew to 292,460 daily vehicles. By 2038 the agency projects 130,000 more vehicles a day. 

Agency officials also say the project is necessary because of the importance of I-10 as a freight corridor. It's estimated that more than 60 million tons of freight use this freeway to get through Houston's center every year, according to the agency. Those goods are valued at over $130 billion annually.

"Congestion increases the cost and delivery time of commodities such as Amazon deliveries groceries and commercial goods," a TxDOT official said during the presentation.

https://www.chron.com/news/article/txdot-i-10-houston-18653366.php

 

I didn't see your post in the general thread so I've merged it with mine.

We have several projects in the area, all separately funded with different timelines. So with that being said, it looks like beside the Inner Katy METRORapid Bus project and the I-10 elevation project, we also have a project to construct (the most likely scenario) 4 elevated managed lanes from 610 to I-45.

More info here:

https://www.chron.com/news/article/txdot-i-10-houston-18653366.php

https://www.txdot.gov/projects/projects-studies/houston/i10-inner-katy-voss-road-to-i45.html

Who is praying about street medians? Pretty sure Jesus would give them the busy signal. 

4 hours ago, Nate_56 said:

In the schematics of the project it looks like they will rebuild the bridge but I-10 will flyover Houston Ave now.

Oh wow. I didn't realize that. Sounds like biking Houston Ave will be easier now if it won't be as tall.

Do we know the impacts on the Houston Ave bridge yet, such as when they will begin dismantling and how long it will take to rebuild? 

12 hours ago, Justin Welling said:

11th Street is working just as intended. Traffic drives slower, drivers actually yield to pedestrians in crosswalks, pedestrian activity has increased along the corridor, cyclists are able to safely bike to the number of thriving businesses along the corridor (something they could not do on 14th St), more businesses are moving to the corridor (RYDE, Rumble, Best Regards, and 1891 to name a few) and the traffic delays appear to be minimal or nonexistent during most of the day. It seems that the small, yet very vocal, group of people who do dislike it give the main reason that "no one uses the bike lane" or "no one bikes in Houston". So yea, the 11th St does feel like it is anti-non-car infrastructure when that is their only reason. 

Side note, as someone who has biked on 14th Street, I would much rather bike on 11th than 14th. 14th is not fun with all the street parking. 

Agreed with most of what you said. As others are saying here, it's to slow traffic down and allow people to cross. I used to bike the Heights trail all the time and I dreaded every time I would come up to 11th street because it was impossible to cross. I kept thinking how crazy it was for mother's with strollers trying to get through there. That intersection has definitely improved.

Where I do disagree with though is that the traffic has not changed substantially since the bike lanes have been installed.... there is noticeable backups on 11th, especially between Shepherd, Yale and Heights Blvd. And because of those backups, there is yet secondary effects of traffic taking "back roads", if you will, 8th street being the big one.. where traffic will exit near MKT at 7th and then travel down 8th to Yale. If anyone here attends the Superneighborhood 15 meetings, it is a major topic ever since the bike lanes were installed. And the city very much listens to these superneighborhood events. The negativity has been incredibly loud while Bike Houston and others considered it a done deal once the street was redone and moved on with other projects... with so much opposition and so little praise at these meetings, it's not unfathomable to see the 11th street bike lanes being removed.

5 hours ago, j_cuevas713 said:

Don't let the pause worry you

I think it will still move forward but I imagine some of the design might change. I-45 to Airline might remain the same, but I-45 to Boundary had some opposition, not just from the nearby residents but also White Oak Music Hall. They are concerned about their Lyft/Uber spots and what it means for people driving to their venue. It gets backed up already with two lanes headed toward WOMH so there is no telling how bad it will get with just one lane. So it makes me wonder.... do they try to add a middle/turning lane here... perhaps during big shows they can shuffle traffic around with that center lane? A lot of unknowns at this point.

I will say, out of all the things to start with as mayor, this has to be the most bizarre ones. I can understand redoing a project in the planning stages but this feels more like a waste of money to completely redo a project that was just finished. 

16 hours ago, Ross said:

I guess that means we will be looking at ripping out all of the changes on 11th, and a return to 50mph weaving across lanes. Followed by ripping out the new wide sidewalks on Shepherd and Durham to add the 4th lane back.

Whelp, I guess don't go to the 11th street thread. 

The Shepherd and Durham project sound protected for now. 

On 2/21/2023 at 9:51 PM, Triton said:

I will actually agree on this point and the left turn lanes needed to be removed at Heights Blvd since forever. That always led to back ups because it was nearly impossible for anyone to turn left during rush hour. Now that left turns are gone, the traffic does flow a lot smoother through there. 

Perhaps it was the first few days when these lanes opened that traffic was horrid (People didn't know what to do?). I will say, traffic times have been better since the bike lanes first went in. It doesn't take that long for me to drive from N Main to Shepherd anymore. 

That being said, I have family that lives on W 8th St. and they have told me traffic has increased dramatically. They walk their dogs on that road and loop back around on the MTK trail.... they said the traffic volume is quite noticeable, especially around rush hour. I myself have noticed a traffic increase on 14th as well and now there's a bit of a line that forms going eastbound near Studewood St. You may have to wait through several lights just to cross through there now.

So now I wonder, have traffic times improved on 11th because people are now getting used to these bike lanes and the left turn removals... and/or.... is the traffic finding other back roads to take to avoid 11th St.

 

Whatever the case, I seriously hope someone does a study on it. 

I feel anytime I post in the Transportation forum, people are constantly using the sad emoji so I'm sorry to make this post as well... 

It is now widely known that for all new bike infrastructure or road makeover projects, every single one of them are on hold and being reassessed if they are not already under construction, from the mayor's office directly. 

The rumor mill is now saying that this project will likely be re-evaluated in the near future. There are too many residents in the area saying there is considerable traffic using W 8th (fewer on 10th) streets and that the minimal bike lane usage isn't justifying the traffic backups on 11th. (<--- edit: had this backwards)

Let me reiterate, this is just a rumor at this point.

Our superneighborhood group has been notified that, both from Mario Castillo and Whitmire's office, that this project has been put on hold and is being reassessed, from Boundary to Airline.

On 1/9/2024 at 10:43 AM, hindesky said:

This what I'm hoping we get with the topping of the midtown area and the GRB area with IH69/59.

 

 

 

Wow I had to do a double take. This looks super similar to our N Main area.

10 hours ago, j_cuevas713 said:

Are you sure? Council member Castillo just said he was going to fight it. 

I mean they are two different offices so sure? I wasn't 100% on the first rumor but the person who told me made it sound like it was common knowledge within the mayor's office that this project would be redone. Then, the church confirmed in a Facebook group that the mayor's office had contacted their senior leadership and said the median would be removed and the street repaved. Sounded like the new curb ramps and other smaller improvements would remain.

On 1/29/2024 at 8:16 PM, Triton said:

So..... lol..... there are rumors that Mayor Whitmire's office is going to announce they are going to dismantle most of this project and just repave the roads. 

 This rumor might be turning into fact. Trinity Lutheran Church has been notified that the median and other improvements will be removed, per Whitmire's office. Let's see what actually happens. Sorry to spread the bad news yall.

So..... lol..... there are rumors that Mayor Whitmire's office is going to announce they are going to dismantle most of this project and just repave the roads. 

This is probably really unpopular on this forum but I wish this project would have included some connection to Studemont. Yes yes, I know, that's making Houston more car centric but I just always felt the way to get back to Studemont was odd. That don't even have a u-turn up at Heights Blvd so it always causes a back up of people turning around going back to Studemont. I guess one of the big challenges would be to make it work with the existing bike trail... and that's probably why they avoid it, not to mention the local backlash.