On the i10erary: Intermodality

When you think of cities with fascinating mass transit systems, chances are the list would comprise some permutation of New York, Chicago, Boston and San Francisco. Usually, arguments for improving transit service centers around “Why don’t we be more like _____,” with the blank typically filled in with one of those four cities.

Now, if the response is “Why don’t we be more like Houston?”, you are bound to either get a fit of projectile laughter or a look of petrified shock you’d see when a rodeo clown bites off the penis of a charging bull. Houston, as in Houston, Texas?

Well, that’s exactly the point of “On the i10erary,” to explore a way of looking at mass transit, land use and urbanism that provides depth and context when we so often reach for easy, self-satisfying generalizations. Houston illustrates this point all too well.

And if you want to see the side of Houston besides the caricature of sprawl-lovin’ red-staters who drive big honkin’ pickup trucks from their exurbs to their careers tied to the oil industry, you can see the bigger picture at Intermodality.

It is a blog by Houston advocacy group Citizens’ Transportation Coalition. The blog items are written by member Christof Spieler, who is a structural engineer by trade and a writer who covered the development of the region’s first light rail line. He provides updates on the major transportation developments of metropolitan Houston with great explanation and analysis. As the blog’s tagline says, it’s “highways, transit, roads, bike paths, etc., etc., and how they all fit together.” You’ll see that Houston, like most other areas, also has its urban future very much on its mind.

What it does well: Intermodality shows you how far transit advocacy can get ahead with the combination of brains and heart. It’s obvious the CTC wants Metro to grow corresponding to the region, but they know they can’t compare Houston with other cities. They have to find the best way it fits in with Houston’s transportation needs and its urban fabric. CTC understands this, as it shows a neighborhood-view of an upcoming addition to its light rail network, the University Line. Besides light rail, Intermodality also touches on buses, goods movement and passenger rail from commuter rail lines to Texas’ plans for high-speed rail.

Why you should read it: Intermodality shows striking parallels between Houston and L.A. We share some similarities, namely a disdain by many urbanists as examples of land use catastrophes or that we are “cars, sprawl … and that’s pretty much all.” Yet we can also see how urbanism and transit can adapt to places where they should fear to tread. L.A. and Houston also share a similar transit experience, with just a decade and some change separating us.

L.A. had gone nearly 30 years between the elimination of streetcar service and the reintroduction of light rail. Our sprawl and steadily plummeting transit ridership meant L.A. was spending billions on “ghost trains” or a service that became obsolete after politicians cut the ribbons. Yet in spite of this, or perhaps because of this, the unthinkable happened. In less than a decade, L.A. went from nothing to having the busiest single light rail line in the country.

That’s an impressive feat for us, but look at what Houston has done. It opened a starter light rail line in 2004, and in just five years of operation, its ridership is in the ballpark of 40,000 boardings. “Good enough for Houston” is an understatement. That 40,000 is along just 7.5 miles of track. It’s a single line connecting downtown with its huge medical center complex to the south. Houston is the home of America’s most productive light rail line. The Blue Line is about 75,000 boardings along 23 miles. If Houston’s rail mileage would scale to the Blue Line’s, it would be used by more than 122,000 daily!

That’s all the more reason we should be paying attention to what’s going on in that part of Texas.

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christof spieler • citizens transportation coalition • houston • i10erary • intermodality