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Transportation Project Inventory. Amy Force. Types of Transportation Facilities to Consider. Highways Carpools, vanpools Local arterial streets Light Rail Transit (LRT) Commuter Rail High-Speed Rail High Occupancy Vehicle Lanes (HOV)
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Transportation Project Inventory Amy Force
Types of Transportation Facilities to Consider • Highways • Carpools, vanpools • Local arterial streets • Light Rail Transit (LRT) • Commuter Rail • High-Speed Rail • High Occupancy Vehicle Lanes (HOV) • Local, intercity and international bus transportation (BRT) • Airports
METRO Planned Projects • New bus, LRT, BRT on fixed guide way (which will be converted to LRT), expanded bus and HOV lanes, and Commuter Rail • 2011 target • METRO Planned Project Schedule (see Table 4 and Figure 3)
Freight Rails • A study is being conducted on the pattern of freight rail • Possibility of passenger rail to run on the same tracks as existing freight rail corridors (see Table 5 and Figure 4)
Freight Rail District • Harris County and City of Houston has passed modifications to existing laws to create FRD’s, addresses both freight and commuter rail issues • Improves mobility in the area, differentiates passenger and freight traffic, facilitates cost-sharing, regional cooperation, relocation of rail yards out, improves safety between cars and trains
Highways • Possibility of METRO buses to use HOV to get to facility • Other carriers and vehicles can need quick and easy access to freeways • Projects planned and under construction (see Table 6 and Figure 5)
Airports • Three airports in area, no rail access, but is needed • HAS (Houston Airport System) says possibility for facility to be a place where passengers can check-in and for security checkpoints and to then shuttle them into airports • Airport System (see Figure 6)
AMTRACK • Has passenger station, but low quality, facility an option to move into • Needs it to be located on the east-west rail corridor • Needs to have easy connections with HAS facilities • Lines (see Figure 7)
Buses • Greyhound’s facility is outdates, facility is an option if located within or adjacent to downtown • Survey of more than a dozen international bus carriers are interested in an intermodal facility in downtown or adjacent also • Comfortable and easily accessible • Better access to METRO • Lines (see Figure 8)
Other considerations • Lower cost to locate the intermodal facility adjacent to existing access points of transportation • Houston is growing primarily to the west
Figure 8. Greyhound, Intercity and International Bus Carriers