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Crowds Force METRORail To Cut Service (Houston)
Click2Houston - KPRC Television ^ | January 30, 2004 | KPRC Television

Posted on 01/31/2004 3:50:04 AM PST by Flyer

Crowds Force METRORail To Cut Service

2 Park & Rides Closed

HOUSTON -- For the second night in a row, large crowds at METRORail stations forced officials to shut down some of the light-rail route and implement their emergency plan.

Service for the new transit system was stopped at Main and Walker Thursday and Friday night when METRO police became concerned that crowded streets could lead to trouble.

"Once it got to a point that we had too many pedestrians to operate safely, we discontinued rail through the downtown area," said Chief Tom Lambert, with METRO Police.

Since METRO expected large crowds through the weekend, it decided to close two of the Park & Ride locations.

The Park & Rides at the West Loop, 4675 South Braeswood, and Fuqua, 11755 Sabo Road, are not open to the public.

METRO officers can make more changes if needed.

"We've asked them to exercise their discretion. If they see circumstances beginning to arise to let supervisors know. And that's exactly what happened last night. Some folks, I think playfully, (tried) to touch out to the train. When you start doing that, we get a little nervous about that from a safety standpoint. That was brought to our attention by the officers, and so we just made a decision that we just discontinue operations. We'll do the same thing tonight," Lambert said.

METRO said the service would end Saturday and Sunday at 8 p.m.

Many of the downtown revelers used METRORail to get to the street parties.

"By the time we got halfway here, you couldn't get on the train. It was packed -- you know, it was full. People were actually having to wait for the next train," said Steven Hypes, who road light-rail train.

"We live out in Sugar Land and so the 90 and Fannin Park & Ride was great," said Bonnie Hypes, who also road METRORail.

Riders were not surprised that the trains did not go further into downtown.

"There was like two or three times the train had to slow down in town here because people walked across, so yeah, that makes sense. Somebody will stumble across it," Steven Hypes said.

The Texas Medical Center is opening one of its parking lots near Greenbriar, Old Spanish Trail and Braeswood to help alleviate downtown congestion.

Approximately 3,500 vehicles will be able to park there. Shuttles will take drivers and passengers into downtown.

Flocks Of Fans Make Their Way To Houston

Fans are starting to take the Bayou City by storm, arriving at area airports to cheer their favorite team on.

Thousands of passengers got a warm and cheerful welcome as they arrived in Houston Friday at Bush Intercontinental and Hobby airports for a weekend of partying and football.

"Flight was just full. There weren't a lot of seats on the plane, so I'm glad I got my tickets early," out-of-towner Russell Ebelherr said.

Houston Airport System spokesman Ernie DeSoto compared this weekend to a holiday, where passengers come in sporadically.

"Today, we are seeing a lot more people coming in. We are seeing a number of people who have gotten the three (or four) days off and are coming today," Houston Airport System spokesman Ernie DeSoto said.

However, after the game is over with, DeSoto said everyone flocks to the airports at once.

"People start showing up after the game and sleeping on the floor. They just want to get to the airport, crash from partying throughout the whole game, and catch their flight in the morning," DeSoto said.

Extra police and undercover officers have been added to the airport systems patrol for Super Bowl weekend. Officials are warning passengers that security will be tight.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Government; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: boondoggle; houston; houstondeathtrain; houstonrail; lightrail; metro; metrofailrail; metrorail; quagmire; rail; taxdollarsatwork; texas; transportation; whambamthankyoutram; youpayforthis
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Thanks for the heads up, hummingbird.
1 posted on 01/31/2004 3:50:05 AM PST by Flyer
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To: 1riot1ranger; Action-America; Aggie Mama; Alkhin; Allegra; American72; antivenom; Antoninus II; ...
Some folks, I think playfully, (tried) to touch out to the train

Brilliant design, Metro.

*PING!*

As always, a FReep mail will get you on or off this Houston topics ping list.

2 posted on 01/31/2004 3:51:24 AM PST by Flyer (Fear the Train!)
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To: Flyer
Thanks for the heads up.
3 posted on 01/31/2004 3:56:23 AM PST by RiflemanSharpe (An American for a more socially and fiscally conservation America!)
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To: Flyer
Some folks, I think playfully, (tried) to touch out to the train

Probably "not drinkin' or nuthin, honest!"
4 posted on 01/31/2004 4:01:50 AM PST by hummingbird ("If it wasn't for the insomnia, I could have gotten some sleep!")
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To: Flyer
"Brilliant design, Metro."


5 posted on 01/31/2004 4:04:41 AM PST by Rebelbase ( <a href="http://www.michaelmoore.com" target="_blank">miserable failure put it in your tagline too!)
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To: Flyer
People were actually having to wait for the next train," said Steven Hypes, who road light-rail train.

Welcome to Dubya's guest-worker "vision thing" for America.
I say this as an Anglo who on more than a couple occassions has had to wait for
a second bus because the first just blows by me, loaded to the "gunnels" with the
low-cost (probably most undocumented) domestics that keep the homes of the elites
of Los Angeles clean.

The only thing that would make the situation even worse?
If the Democrats "vision thing" for total immigration amnesty became our future,
not Dubya's guest-worker plan.
6 posted on 01/31/2004 4:05:58 AM PST by VOA
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To: Flyer
Over New Years in Melbourne, Australia there was a major flap when train service to the far flung suburbs was discontinued at 1AM. People had been encouraged to attend the midnight fireworks downtown only to find if they lingered to long after ... they were left no way home on public transit. Taxi's were overwhelmed, many people walked miles, with hundreds not getting home to well after dawn.
Officials promise to do better next New Years.
7 posted on 01/31/2004 4:06:35 AM PST by BluH2o
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To: Flyer
For the second night in a row, large crowds at METRORail stations forced officials
to shut down some of the light-rail route and implement their emergency plan.


So, when things get really congested...shut down a part of the transportation system
sold to the taxpayers with the promise of reducing traffic congestion?

I don't know the details of the Houston situation...but this sounds like the usual
situation with some public tranportation boondogles.

I must admit, as much as I hate the liberal environment, at least the
underground subway system in Boston (the "T") seemed to work pretty well...
except for the crowds that actually demonstrate that it works.
8 posted on 01/31/2004 4:09:44 AM PST by VOA
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To: BluH2o
Officials promise to do better

Uh huh, sure.

9 posted on 01/31/2004 4:10:10 AM PST by Flyer (Fear the Train!)
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To: Rebelbase
"Brilliant design, Metro."

Houston built a light-rail above ground in urban (cross-traffic) areas?
Well, this just shows their public transit folks are probably the same ones
who did the same dumb in other parts of the country.

I'll give it to Dallas...at least they put parts of their system below grond level.
10 posted on 01/31/2004 4:12:42 AM PST by VOA
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To: VOA
So, when things get really congested...shut down a part of the transportation system sold to the taxpayers with the promise of reducing traffic congestion?

And it is averaging an accident every 3 days, which shuts it down, too. Voters approved another few billion for expansion. Sigh. . .

11 posted on 01/31/2004 4:13:02 AM PST by Flyer (Fear the Train!)
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To: Flyer
At least carnage in the streets was avoided.
Good call by the cops.. "shut it down!" Works for me.

Let's hope to make it permanent, rip it out and sell it.
An amusement park might buy the thing as a thrill ride.


12 posted on 01/31/2004 4:13:42 AM PST by humblegunner ("I'm going off of the rails like a crazy train!" ~Ozzy)
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To: VOA
Houston built a light-rail above ground in urban (cross-traffic) areas?

Yep. It is averaging an accident every 3 days.

13 posted on 01/31/2004 4:14:26 AM PST by Flyer (Fear the Train!)
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To: humblegunner
At least carnage in the streets was avoided.

Yeah, but it failed to take any cars off the streets, but whatever means necessary.

14 posted on 01/31/2004 4:15:53 AM PST by Flyer (Fear the Train!)
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To: LurkerNoMore!
Some folks, I think playfully, (tried) to touch out to the train.

Jeez - what do you hillbillies do when you see a microwave oven or some other "modern convenience"?

15 posted on 01/31/2004 4:17:15 AM PST by Senator Pardek
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To: Flyer
And it is averaging an accident every 3 days, which shuts it down, too.

Nearly the same thing here in Los Angeles with our Metro rail system.
In a place that is still basically a desert, this system has many sections
that are at ground level...so the impatient/Darwin-award-winners have to have collissions
at cross-traffic areas.
But building a ditch for the rail "would cost too much" (what's the lost cost of years
in which ground-level accidents cause traffic snafus and the dollar-cost in public services
to the dead and/injured).
"They know the cost of everything and the value of nothing."

At least in Houston, with your water-table, I naively could see if the mass-trans planners
would argue that putting the system below ground-level and keeping it from flooding
would be prohibitively expensive.

Voters approved another few billion for expansion. Sigh. . .

Amazing. I can see $$$ for a system that works. But to repeat a screw-up.
That's just sad.

I wasn't saying the buried (semi-buried) systems in Boston and Dallas were perfect...
but building a people moving system that conflicts with existing traffic...
that's so dumb as to be unbelievable.
16 posted on 01/31/2004 4:22:15 AM PST by VOA
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To: Senator Pardek
what do you hillbillies do when you see a microwave oven

Hey, we ain't hillbillies!

We're hicks!

17 posted on 01/31/2004 4:22:21 AM PST by Flyer (Fear the Train!)
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To: Senator Pardek
Hillbillies are further north, Senator (I'm 3/4 hillbilly myself..heh, heh.) Lot of the people "reaching out" are in Houston for the Superbowl and for the week of street parties preceding the big event. The locals are wising up to staying out of the death trains' way...unless they're "drinkin' or sumtin."
18 posted on 01/31/2004 4:23:44 AM PST by hummingbird ("If it wasn't for the insomnia, I could have gotten some sleep!")
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To: VOA
keeping it from flooding would be prohibitively expensive.

Even at street level is is prone to shutdowns with minor flooding. It hasn't happened yet, but it's only been running for a month.

19 posted on 01/31/2004 4:25:26 AM PST by Flyer (Fear the Train!)
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To: humblegunner
beautiful photoshop work!

You'd think that some smart city newspapers would occasionally print
submitted work like yours on their editorial page.
20 posted on 01/31/2004 4:26:18 AM PST by VOA
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