The Uline options: University of Houston
This is the second in a series in which I’m examining how the various options for the University Line serve the places along the line. This time, we’ll look at the east end of the line, where there are 3 options: US59/Alabama, Wheeler/Ennis/Alabama, and Wheeler/Ennis/Elgin.
The University of Houston is a significant destination, with 34,000 students, only 6% of which live on campus. A university is a major transit market, both peak and off-peak:
- Students living off-campus commuting to and from the university
- Faculty and staff commuting to and from the university
- Students living on-campus running errands and visiting the city
- Students going to internships, volunteer activities, museums, hospitals, libraries, and other off-campus activities
- People attending continuing studies classes
- Students from other universities going to the library or attending classes
- People going to concerts, lectures, galleries, and sports events
When the current system expansion is complete in 2012, UH will be served by two transit lines: the Southeast Line from Downtown to the Palm Center, and the University Line. Both will connect to residential areas (including many apartments), job centers, other educational and cultural institutions, shopping, parks, and nightlife.
Broadly speaking, the UH campus is divided into 3 areas: the athletic facilities and stadiums on the west side between Scott and Cullen, dorms and apartments at the south side of campus along Wheeler, and the academic buildings at the center of campus. Historically, the university has tended to isolate itself from the neighborhoods around it, and the edges of campus are largely made up of parking lots. But a new master plan aims to connect the university to the city with new buildings, including not only academic and residential facilities but also retail, creating a new, porous and pedestrian-friendly campus edge (the image above is from the master plan presentation, at http://www.advancement.uh.edu/masterplan/.
UH already has an extensive shuttle system, and that will obviously be adjusted as required to connect to the transit stations. But taking a shuttle to transit is cumbersome, introducing another connection to a trip. The ideal is for as many students, faculty, staff, and visitors as possible to be able to walk to their destinations.
The Southeast Line will skirt the west and south edges of campus on Scott and Wheeler, with three stations alongside the athletic and residential areas. The academic core is 1/4 to 1/2 mile away — a 5 to 10 minute walk, probably acceptable to most students on a pedestrian-friendly campus. However, the northern edge of campus, which includes some of the most significant destinations for outside visitors (the music school, the art gallery, the architecture school, and the public radio/television studio), is poorly served — 1/2 to 3/4 mile from transit.
On this map, north is to the right. Academic buildings are blue, athletic facilities are yellow, and dorms are green. Dashed lines are 1/4 miles from the stations; grey shaded areas are over 1/2 mile.
It’s important to remember that these two transit lines that will serve UH connect to different destinations: if you’re going Downtown, you want the Southeast Line, but if you’re going Uptown you want the University Line. Being near a station on the other line means you need to transfer. Thus, it’s best for both lines to serve as much of campus as possible.
Two of the University Line options — US59/Alabama and Wheeler/Ennis/Alabama — end at Scott and Alabama, in the Robertson Stadium parking lot. To its credit, UH clearly see the potential of a Scott/Alabama station in creating a new gateway to campus. The Master Plan shows a station on campus land, adjacent to a new transit center and surrounded by new mixed use buildings. A pedestrian-friendly mall, with shuttle bus service, would lead into campus. Here’s another image from the plan:
Despite these plans, though, the Alabama options have limitations. They don’t serve any areas that aren’t already served by the Southeast Line. The academic core is still over 1/4 mile away, and roughly a third of campus is more than 1/2 mile away. To facilitate transfer to the Southeast Line, the Cleburne Station on the Southeast Line would presumably be moved, putting it further from TSU. And the Alabama options essentially preclude any further eastward expansion of the University Line.
The third University Line option skirts the campus on Elgin, connecting the Southeast Line alongside the athletic complex, then stopping again on the north side of campus at Entrance 7. Adding this station puts all of campus within 1/2 mile of campus, and puts the visitor destinations on the north side of campus — especially the music and arts buildings — with 1/4 mile. From the academic core, students would be able to access either line (depending on their final destination) simply by walking north or south. By continuing eastwards to the Eastwood Transit Center, this option also connects UH to the commuter bus service on I-45 and to the East End.
The Uline scorecard for UH:
- US59/Alabama: Serves sports facilties well; requires transfer or long walk to get to any other part of campus. 2/3 of academic core is within 1/2 mile. Could be part of redevelopment of stadium parking lot. No eastward connections. REquires moving Cleburne (TSU) station to allow easy transfer.
- Wheeler/Ennis/Alabama ditto.
- Wheeler/Ennis/Elgin Serves sports facilties; stops near arts, music, architecture, and broadcasting. All of academic core of campus is within 1/2 mile. Eastward connections to I-45 and East End.
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