Houston Ave Safety Improvements

[hindesky]

Advocates held a rally Feb. 4 calling on the city to pause the project. New District H council member Mario Castillo, who took office in January, was among the voices calling for a one-week pause on the project.

Castillo said he learned the project was under review by the administration of Houston Mayor John Whitmire on Jan. 30. If wasn't until Feb. 2 that he said he learned the work would start Feb. 5.

"If there are issues with this project, let's figure out how to tweak it," Castillo said at the Feb. 4 rally. "This is a big city. We can keep our pedestrians safe and our drivers safe and our bicyclists safe all at the same time. By ripping this project out ... without answering constituent concerns, we are telling people we are choosing cars over pedestrians."

https://communityimpact.com/houston/heights-river-oaks-montrose/transportation/2024/02/05/groups-speak-out-against-planned-removal-of-newly-installed-houston-avenue-median/

[sapo2367]

On 2/5/2024 at 8:41 AM, steve1363 said:

Don't blame the church.   What about 11th street?

I mean, they were directly opposed to the project prior to construction (as evidenced by earlier posts in this thread). I don't think its a stretch to conclude they still aren't fans and have used the change in leadership as an opportunity to get what they want. 

I should be clear I think its probably influential congregants, not the church itself (although they did pretty publicly use their church sign to oppose it).

11th st is the same -- someone has Whitmire's ear and has a vendetta against non-car related infrastructure in their neighborhood.

[hbg.50]

25 minutes ago, sapo2367 said:

I mean, they were directly opposed to the project prior to construction (as evidenced by earlier posts in this thread). I don't think its a stretch to conclude they still aren't fans and have used the change in leadership as an opportunity to get what they want. 

I should be clear I think its probably influential congregants, not the church itself (although they did pretty publicly use their church sign to oppose it).

11th st is the same -- someone has Whitmire's ear and has a vendetta against non-car related infrastructure in their neighborhood.

There was a segment on channel 13 yesterday.   Knapp Chevrolet was very much against the changes, as was the church, and the nearby fire station.   Both were interviewed.

As far as 11th street, let's not paint the opposition as being "against non-car related infrastructure."  That is a flat out lie and an attempt to create an "us vs. them" hostile environment which I notice a lot on this site.  In fact, many in the neighborhood suggested 14th street would have been a much better option for the bike lanes.

[j.33]

40 minutes ago, steve1363 said:

As far as 11th street, let's not paint the opposition as being "against non-car related infrastructure."  That is a flat out lie and an attempt to create an "us vs. them" hostile environment which I notice a lot on this site.  In fact, many in the neighborhood suggested 14th street would have been a much better option for the bike lanes.

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. 

[Some one]

2 hours ago, steve1363 said:

There was a segment on channel 13 yesterday.   Knapp Chevrolet was very much against the changes, as was the church, and the nearby fire station.   Both were interviewed.

As far as 11th street, let's not paint the opposition as being "against non-car related infrastructure."  That is a flat out lie and an attempt to create an "us vs. them" hostile environment which I notice a lot on this site.  In fact, many in the neighborhood suggested 14th street would have been a much better option for the bike lanes.

Great, so let's keep the bike lanes on 11th St AND add bike lanes to 14th. 😁

[s3mh]

5 hours ago, steve1363 said:

There was a segment on channel 13 yesterday.   Knapp Chevrolet was very much against the changes, as was the church, and the nearby fire station.   Both were interviewed.

As far as 11th street, let's not paint the opposition as being "against non-car related infrastructure."  That is a flat out lie and an attempt to create an "us vs. them" hostile environment which I notice a lot on this site.  In fact, many in the neighborhood suggested 14th street would have been a much better option for the bike lanes.

The main point of the 11th street redesign was not just to put in bike lanes.  It was to make it possible for pedestrians and cyclists to cross 11th street without having to frogger through 4 lanes of people going 45 mph trying to cut through the Heights to avoid highway traffic jams.  Bike lanes on 14th would not have done anything to help with that.  Thus, the 14th street suggestion was not really a serious answer to the problems on 11th street and was clearly just an attempt by opponents to claim that they are on the side of bike improvements when they really aren't.  

[hbg.50]

I’m not opposed to the bike lanes on 11th.  What I object to is how sloppy the street looks (like a perpetual construction zone), and the utter lack of bike traffic.  If BikeHouston is going to lobby for bike lanes they should have a program to increase usage?  Maybe give away free bikes?  I don’t know…

 

[AS_]

11 minutes ago, steve1363 said:

What I object to is how sloppy the street looks (like a perpetual construction zone)

 

Uh, Shepherd is a little further down. That's the perpetual construction zone at the moment.

Edited February 6 by AS_

[j_cuevas713]

2 hours ago, steve1363 said:

I’m not opposed to the bike lanes on 11th.  What I object to is how sloppy the street looks (like a perpetual construction zone), and the utter lack of bike traffic.  If BikeHouston is going to lobby for bike lanes they should have a program to increase usage?  Maybe give away free bikes?  I don’t know…

 

Give away free bikes? If we continue to build out the network and create the necessary connectivity,  then ridership will follow. And we're not just lobbying for cycling, we lobby for safe streets as well. Traffic speeds on 11th are down and sales tax is up for many businesses. 

Edited February 7 by j_cuevas713

[004n063]

I rarely see cars on [insert basically any residential street here]. Keeping it open to cars is clearly a waste.

[Triton]

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.

[j.33]

10 hours ago, Triton said:

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.

How do we know the cut through on 8th Street is because of 11th Street and not because of MKT Development and those two apartment complexes? It could be a combination of both, but I have a feeling that 8th Street will always feel busy with all the development around 6th and Waverly. 

[hindesky]

Houston Public Works has announced that they will start the process of removing the medians and curbs from Houston Avenue starting next week, as the controversy roars on between pedestrian safety advocates and Mayor John Whitmire.

The median and curbs were installed on Houston Avenue between Center Street and Memorial Drive in December to make crossing the street safer for pedestrians. However, less than two months after they were installed, Whitmire decided to pull them out, insisting the medians pose a hazard to drivers. 

In a statement released with the removal announcement, HPW said that Houston Avenue's concrete median and curbs reduce lane capacity and restrict turning into properties. The removal of the medians would restore the roadway and improve traffic safety for all travelers, including first responders and METRO buses.

Before the work begins, the agency will distribute door hangers in the surrounding area to inform residents of the upcoming construction. Contractors will mark the areas where changes will be made ahead of time, an HPW spokesperson told Chron.

"Crews will begin the physical work to remove the medians next week (weather permitting). Once removed, crews will rehabilitate portions of the roadway to restore it to its previous condition," the spokesperson said in an emailed statement. 

Joe Cutrufo, executive director at BikeHouston, said that the Houston Ave. project improved safety measures for pedestrians and bicyclists and it doesn't make sense to remove it from city streets. 

"We hear a lot about compromising when we think about who compromises the most in Houston it's the people who try to get around without a car," Cutrufo said.

Peter Eccles, Director of Policy with Link Houston, said that the $100,000 project aligned with Houston's Vision Zero initiative, which calls for zero traffic deaths and serious injuries on city streets by 2030. 

"This is a project that was identified by former council member Karla Cisneros, who asked the city to figure out what we can do about this section of street that I know to be very dangerous and unpleasant," Eccles said. "The city's response was to design some very common sense improvements that are proven safety countermeasures from the Federal Highway Administration." 

The Lutheran church Trinity Downtown, located at Houston and Washington avenues in the heart of the project, opposed the roadwork, citing difficulties for its parishioners to access the church's main driveway.

https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/houston-avenue-medians-18654279.php

[j_cuevas713]

I'm working with some peeps to get these safety measures redone. I encourage yall to email CM Castillo and let him know you support these safety measures to keep people safe. He's been very vocal about the lack of transparency in removing these safety improvements. Here is his email: DISTRICTH@HOUSTONTX.GOV

[cspwal]

Looking back, its unclear to me what curbs were added - and google maps hasn't been updated because its so recent.  The construction photos make it look like any of dozens of roads in houston with medians - lots of turning lanes and curb cuts, with minimal protection of the cross walk at the tips of the medians.  Does someone have a diagram of the project with the places people don't like marked?

[hindesky]

One of the local news stations is going to do a story about the unchristian like church who hates pedestrians as much as Whitmire does. Emblem on his work badge looks like the ABC13 logo.

Edited February 8 by hindesky

[TXK]

Putting "prayer works" on the sign to presumably celebrate getting their way comes across as somewhere between disingenuous and hypocritical given that is was their complaints and connections that caused the change.

[Triton]

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

[004n063]

On 2/7/2024 at 9:13 PM, cspwal said:

Looking back, its unclear to me what curbs were added - and google maps hasn't been updated because its so recent.  The construction photos make it look like any of dozens of roads in houston with medians - lots of turning lanes and curb cuts, with minimal protection of the cross walk at the tips of the medians.  Does someone have a diagram of the project with the places people don't like marked?

There were medians on the north and south sides of the intersections, which created pedestrian refuge in the center. There were turning lane median cuts about 150 feet south of the intersection that enabled turns.

[samagon]

hopefully they can keep doing this good work and remove any medians from Westheimer as well, all the way from 610 to Highway 6.

that's sarcastic by the way.

[TacoDog]

Has anyone looked at the safety improvements that were made in this section? 

On 12/17/2023 at 2:21 PM, hindesky said:

I think the worshipers thought god would smite them if they were late for services. The truth probably is the church's hierarchy thought people wouldn't show up to tithe their salaries.

 

 

Could this be re-worked to be safer but still allow the turning lane to the church? The new section reminds me of 11th street between Shepherd and Durham in the Heights.

[j_cuevas713]

The only solution I see is basically cutting all those pedestrian islands in half and removing the guided turns 

[hbg.50]

47 minutes ago, j_cuevas713 said:

The only solution I see is basically cutting all those pedestrian islands in half and removing the guided turns 

I presume the tear-out work has started…drove by at lunch and had to turn around going southbound on Houston Avenue…traffic was stacked up under the RR bridge…only one lane open.

[j_cuevas713]

Yeah the fight is far from over on this

Edited February 9 by j_cuevas713

[hindesky]

Construction barrels are up and Whitmire is going to honor the unchristian like church's demand to continue killing pedestrians and cyclists.

Edited February 10 by hindesky

[hbg.50]

5 minutes ago, hindesky said:

Construction barrels are up and Whitmire is going to honor the unchristian like church's demand to continue killing pedestrians and cyclists.

Yes, that is what the church is demanding.  Glad we can all be civil adults on HAIF.

[hindesky]

Follow the money, the church contributed to the Whitmire campaign and he is just doing their bidding. The church is worried about their parishioners being a few seconds late, mad and not paying the church leaderships salary their tithe. It's always about money.💸

Many of the church members park across Washington Ave. and other lots in the area. They hire an off duty cops helping them cross the streets. Not sure why the leadership is worried about parking, they have very little parking on the property.  If that is the problem spend some money on a parking garage and a skybridge. But that would take money from their pocketbooks.

 

 

[004n063]

18 hours ago, hindesky said:

Construction barrels are up and Whitmire is going to honor the unchristian like church's demand to continue killing pedestrians and cyclists.

I think you're misrepresenting things a bit here.

The new medians protected drivers, too.

[TXK]

The church's sign this morning said something to the effect of "we care about safety, accessibility, and mobility." Medians are torn up and starting to be taken away.

[s3mh]

For the next three years, whenever a neighborhood has an urgent infrastructure need, they should go to city council and ask Whitmire to get it done.  Then, when Whitmire tells them that there is a lengthy public improvement process with a lot of projects already in line, the neighborhood can then say "yeah, but what about Houston Ave?"  The speed at which this is getting done is nothing more than a political favor with one set of constituents in the city getting to cut the line over others.  Quitmire is going to set himself up for a tough reelection fight in 3 years if he is just going to give out goodies to connected constituents for the next three years.