The University Line DEIS, illustrated, part 2
Last Saturday, I summarized METRO’s DEIS for the west end of the University Line. In some ways, the east end of the line is the forgotten end: while the disputes over the west end alignment have been played out in the media, the discussion of the east end has been more quiet and less public. That’s ironic because the impacts on the community could be greater. The Third Ward is heavily transit dependent, and portions (especially the Bottoms, north of Alabama) are in need of revitalization. It’s also a largely residential neighborhood. Richmond and Westpark are heavily traveled streets, largely commercial with some pockets of residential. Alabama and Wheeler are largely residential, with some pockets of commercial, and have light traffic. As a result of this, the options east of Main have more noise impacts and more residential displacements than the options west of Main.
Alignment
There are four options on the table: 3 different light rail routes and a “no build” option. There are also Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) versions of the build options and an improved local bus option. The three rail options are the same we saw in January.
The first option continues down Wheeler (which is the extension of Richmond) to the western edge of the TSU campus, then turns north on Ennis to Elgin before turning east again and running along Elgin across the Southeast Line at Scott, along the northern edge of the UH campus, and then under the Gulf Freeway to the Eastwood transit center.
The second option follows Wheeler and Ennis as well, but turns onto Alabama rather than Elgin, terminating at a Southeast Line transfer station at Scott and Alabama, in a portion of UH’s Robertson Stadium parking lot.
The third option follows wheeler only for two blocks, turning northeast and running under the north edge of the elevated Southwest Freeway to Alabama. It then follows Alabama all the way to Scott, terminating like the second option at UH.
None of these options, incidentally, include rail on Wheeler through the TSU campus.
The two options that terminate at Scott and Alabama, each 2.3 miles long, both cost $181 million. Since the Wheeler-Elgin option is longer (3.3 miles) it costs more ($219 million) though it actually has the lowest cost per mile.
Service
All three options would have the same kind of service we have on the Main Street Line: trains from 4:00 in the morning to 1:00 in the morning, every 6 minutes during most of the day, every 12 minutes in the evening and on weekends, and every 15 minutes late at night. All three options would connect to the existing Main Street Line at Wheeler Station and the Southeast Line at Scott.
All three options would include local bus transfers at Almeda, Dowling, and to various buses at Wheeler and Scott. The Wheeler-Elgin option also includes transfers to East End local buses at Eastwood as well as transfers to HOV lane park-and-ride buses from Southeast Houston and Clear Lake. This would open up new commute possibilities: a 20-minute trip on express bus from Fuqua Park and Ride (Gulf Freeway at Beltway8) gets you to Eastwood, another 4 minute ride would get you to UH or another 25 minute ride would get you to Greenway Plaza.
All options include a park-and-ride lot at Scott. The Wheeler-Elgin option would include another at Eastwood.
Travel times would be 7 or 8 minutes from Main Street to Scott and another 4 minutes to UH.
Ridership
Of the three options, Wheeler-Elgin, with its connectivity to Eastwood and well-located stations at both TSU and UH, gets the highest ridership: 7,760 boardings east of Main ‘combined with the Cummins option west of Main. The Wheeler-Alabama Alabama option has 5,220; Alabama has 4,450. The difference between the two is due entirely to adding a station at TSU. (These numbers don’t count the Wheeler station, which has another 1,900 boardings.)
Traffic impacts
Unlike the west end of the University Line, the east end runs through an area with relatively small traffic volumes. Alabama currently has four traffic lanes but carries only 17,700 cars a day, half as many as Richmond and about the same as Bissonnet, a two-lane street. Wheeler carries only 13,000; Ennis only 7,3000. Elgin, a four-lane street with a wide median, carries 10,200.
To minimize property takings, METRO is proposing to narrow Alabama, Wheeler, and/or Ennis to one traffic lane in each direction with curbside parking. Because of the low traffic volumes, this would have no major impacts on traffic. METRO also proposes to add traffic lights at every intersection.
Despite the reduced lane counts, only 3 intersections on the Wheeler-Elgin option, 2 on the Wheeler-Alabama option, and none on the Alabama option would see overall congestion increase to “E”/”F” due to the rail line.
Noise and vibration impacts
Both Alabama and Wheeler are quiet residential streets. As a result, trains would raise noise levels. Current noises levels on Alabama and Wheeler are around 57-59 db; passing trains would raise that to 61-63 db. In some cases, mitigation (new double-paned windows, for example) might be required. All three options have these impacts; the worst is the Alabama option (133 impacts); Wheeler-Alabama has 103 and Wheeler-Elgin has 91.
Property required
All three options have property takings: 41 to 60 properties affected. As on the west end, most of these are small strips of land. But there would be displaced businesses and people: 8 businesses and 10 residential units for Wheeler-Elgin, 8 businesses and 14 residential units for Wheeler-Alabama, 5 businesses and 10 residential units for Alabama. Both Alabama options would also take a church. The takings for Alabama include some land from Cuney Homes.
On Alabama, Elgin, and Ennis, most of the property takings are at station locations. This is because METRO is proposing to keep one lane of traffic in each direction and a parking lane in each direction for the entire length of those streets. If that on-street parking was not provided at stations, everything would fit in the current street right-of-way. These are largely residential neighborhoods; residents park in their driveways and most of the people parking on the street are TSU students. Do those blocks really need on-street parking, especially considering that the next block over, and all the cross streets, would still have it?
There are two areas where the streets are narrow enough that additional property is required even away from stations: Wheeler between Caroline and Almeda, and Alabama near the UH campus. But once again, these takings could be reduced by eliminating on-street parking.
Other impacts
As on the west end, the DEIs shows no flooding impacts, and endangered species are safe.
All three options pass three historic neighborhoods: 3rd Ward Historic District (eligible for listing but not yet listed), the Third Ward South neighborhood (which meets the criteria for historic listing), and the Third Ward East Historic Districts (eligible for listing but not yet listed). Up to 20 properties with structures of historic age in these districts could be affected by takings, generally losing parts of their lawns. Three buildings along the alignments are on the National Register of Historic Places: two buildings at Riverside Hospital on Ennis near Elgin, and a school on Wheeler near SH288. None of the three would be directly affected.
Commenting
Metro is planning 2 open houses and a hearing so the public can ask questions about the project and make comments. Comments will also be accepted in writing through September 15.
What: Public Meeting / Open House
Date: Monday, August 13, 2007
Time: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Location: Holiday Inn Select – Greenway Plaza
Address: 2712 S.W. Freeway
What: Public Meeting / Open House
Date: Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Time: 5 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Location: Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church
Address: 3826 Wheeler Avenue
What: Public Hearing and Open House
Date: Monday, August 27, 2007
Time: Open House, 1 p.m. – 2 p.m.
Public Hearing begins at 2 p.m.
Location: South Main Baptist Church
Address: 4100 Main Street
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