Metro chairman seeks broad base of support

Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle ^ | April 11, 2004, 12:46PM | By LUCAS WALL

[weegee]

David Wolff, chairman and president of the commercial development firm Wolff Cos., recently took over as chairman of the Metropolitan Transit Authority's board of directors. Mayor Bill White tapped Wolff to oversee transit policy and the Metro Solutions expansion plan, which voters narrowly approved in November.

Wolff sat down recently in his Galleria-area office with transportation reporter Lucas Wall.

Question: Metro has a lot of opponents in the community -- 48 percent of voters cast their ballots against the expansion plan. What can you do to improve the agency's image and promote the benefits of mass transit?

Answer: It's unfortunate the referendum had to take place before the Main Street light rail commenced operating because people really had no idea what light rail was going to be like until they could see it with their own eyes. I think the margin of victory would have been greater if it had been a few months later, but they couldn't afford to wait.

Q: But with all the wrecks, the limited destinations and slow speed of the trains, do you not think the referendum might have failed if it were held today?

A: Absolutely we take the accidents seriously and are continuing to make efforts to reduce them, but generally people look at it and say, "My goodness, what this opens up for the city in terms of possibilities!" It changes our view of what the city can become. ... People's reactions, don't you think, have been on balance favorable? People who criticize us are just looking to say something negative.

Q: Safety is becoming a major concern on the first rail line, with 33 crashes so far. What else can be done to address the problem?

A: We need much better traffic-law enforcement. When was the last time you saw somebody getting a ticket for being the last car through a red light? People are making illegal left turns on Main Street and getting into accidents with the train. Why are they in the habit of making illegal turns? ... Running a rail line in a city that has never had a rail line before, in a heavily traveled corridor where people are not accustomed to following traffic laws, is not without its problems. But I'm hoping we can get a handle on it.

Q: Are you saying the cops aren't doing their job?

A: There needs to be a reassignment of personnel. I have no reason to believe police are slacking off. But I don't think HPD has a very active traffic enforcement division; I've been told that.

Q: What about your vision for Metro?

A: Metro has done many good things in the past. Part of my vision will be to communicate that to the community and build a broad base of support among many people. One issue lately has been the support of the congressional delegation for Metro. I want to earn the support of the entire delegation because you really can't create a regional transportation system, which depends a great deal on federal funding, without strong congressional support. We've got to earn that.

Q: What about U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay? He has been actively opposed to rail in Houston. What steps can you take to bring him around?

A: One thing we will do is assure him that he will know everything I know when I know it in terms of numbers, projections and the like. In the past, there's been -- rightly or wrongly -- a question as to whether or not Metro has been totally forthcoming with its information. ... He wanted there to be a referendum. Now that's been held, and he wrote me a cordial letter saying he is looking forward to working with me. I think Tom DeLay is "what you see is what you get."

Q: Do you ever ride the bus or train?

A: I've taken the train. I grew up taking transit in Philadelphia. Took the trolley and bus home from school every day, and I've spent a lot of time on transit systems around the country and around the world. I haven't really developed much familiarity with the bus system in Houston, but I intend to.

[weegee]

Houston PING

[Allegra]

They left off a question:

Q. Have you ever run into the train?

Yet?

[weegee]

FYI - Author Lucas Wall was the same "journalist" who bashed President Bush deliberately against the family's wishes in this article. Looks like he hasn't been fired yet despite a rising number of Houstonians cancelling their subscriptions and national attention from Laura Ingraham and Bill O'Reilly as well as local attention from Dan Patrick.

Soldier from Houston dies in Iraq two weeks into duty 21-year-old killed while fighting in Fallujah

houston chronicle ^ | April 7, 2004, 12:08PM | LUCAS WALL

Walters said his family did not want to discuss their sentiments about the war or the political debate surrounding President Bush's failure to find weapons of mass destruction, one of the prime reasons cited for invading Iraq last year.

"Right now we strictly want to honor Leroy," he said.

This "Right now" is a distortion that implies the family does indeed blame President Bush when they absolutely do not.

[weegee]

FYI 2

Accidental Houston Chronicle memo admits to tainting the news with political agenda

There isn't a more critical issue on the horizon. I propose a series of editorials, editorial cartoons and Sounding Board columns leading up to the rail referendum, with this specific objective: Continuing our long standing efforts to make rail a permanent part of the transit mix here.

The timing, language and approach of the paper's editorials would, of course, be the decision of the Editorial Board. But I suggest that they could be built upon and informed by a news-feature package with an equally specific focus...

[Flyer]

*PING!*

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

[ASTM366]

The stupid clown, Lee P Brown, the Mayor prior to Houston's current Mayor, Bill White, saw to it that we spent millions on electric train that ran from the Houston Astrodome thru the Houston Medical Center to downtown.

It was built for the SuperBowl and will continue to be a drain on our city for years to come.

We need to send the trains to the junk yard and rip up the tracks.

[middie]

I'll be in Houston late next week. What's with all this train dust-up?

[TheGrimReaper]

Lucas Wall is a deliberate liar; the credibility of all his writings must be doubted. At least the NY Times finally fired Jason Blair.... The Comical probably won't follow suit, because some integrity would be required for that.

[weegee]

Keep your car off Main Street and Fannin and you should be safe.

Can anyone post the link and current counter for the Wham-Bam-Tram?

[Dog Gone]

I don't have the counter, but the train has removed 33 vehicles from the road. Forcibly.

I think it's just wonderful that Metro's solution is turn all traffic signals red 15 seconds before a train enters the intersection.

That will cause further congestion and traffic problems, something that Metro supposedly was addressing by building the toy train.

My suggestion to people who need to visit the Medical Center? Don't get sick in the first place.

[Action-America]

generally people look at it and say, "My goodness, what this opens up for the city in terms of possibilities!"

Possibilities:

• 105 accidents a year, caused by the Wham-Bam-Tram.
• Long outages of service caused by only 3 inches of water.
• Electrocution of passengers, when a low paid Metro employee fails to observe the 3 inch limit.
• More national headlines, laughing at Houston, such as the USA Today article, "Houston's crash course in light rail".
• A new genre of jokes appearing across the Internet, but instead of making fun of Aggies or Lawyers, they will be making fun of Houston and Houstonians.

This, all thanks to the Wham-Bam-Tram. Gee, the possibilities are endless.

Check out the Wham-Bam-Tram Ram Counter and the Wham-Bam-Tram Crash Clock at ActionAmerica.org.

It's long past time to admit that the Wham-Bam-Tram has been a dismal failure and dismantle it and start over. We certainly don't need to add to this boondoggle.

 

[Action-America]

By the way, it has now been 99 hours since the last Wham-Bam-Tram Crash. The more time that passes without a crash, the more statistically dangerous the Wham-Bam-Tram route becomes. Fear the Train.

Here is the Wham-Bam-Tram Crash Clock, that tracks that time, at ActionAmerica.org.

 

[TexasCajun]

Mr. Wolff, what do you intend to do about the TERROR-TRAIN we have to live with now?