Houston mixes modes: oil city's planners have selected an innovative mix of monorail and light rail to serve its transportation needs. The estimated cost is $1 billion

In the midst of freeway widening projects that may or may not alleviate very congested traffic, and faced with an additional 40,000 cars jamming its roads each year, Houston is looking to rail transit as the solution to its transportation problem. By a 5-4 vote, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) board selected the Houston Monorail Team's $1 billion monorail/light rail system, which could be in operation by 1998.

The Houston Monorail Team is a joint venture headed by The Transportation Group, Inc. (TGI, a Bombardier company) and Kiewit Construction Group. Other members include Siemens, DeLeuw Cather & Co., Pate Engineers, SEL Division of Alcatel Canada, and Zimmer Gunsel Frasca Partnership.

Houston's metropolitan area, rather than having one large central downtown area, has three major downtown-sized areas and several smaller ones. TGI felt that these centers-Downtown, Uptown, and the Texas Medical Center could not be adequately served by conventional rail systems.

The proposed system would consist of a 13.6 mile monorail (Initial Line) running from Downtown to West Belt Station; a 5.3 mile monorail line from Downtown to the Texas Medical Center/Astrodome; a 4.5 mile light rail line from downtown to Universities/Northeast, and local circulation systems at the Texas Medical Center and Uptown.

Houston would use TGI's M VI monorail, which is similar to the monorail presently in service at Walt Disney World Resort, Orlando, Fla. Its bi-directional cars ride on nitrogen-filled rubber tires along the guideway, traveling at speeds up to 55 mph. Initial service in Houston would use 103foot long three-car trains, with passenger capacity of 78 seated and 72 standees.

The lightweight design and wraparound suspension system of the M VI cars require a 26-inch wide running surface on the elevated steel-reinforced concrete guideway. Constructed in 100 and 110-foot span lengths, the guideways can be installed at grade, underground, or elevated. Beams and columns can be cast at a remote location and then secured in place at the construction site.

Switching will be integrated with the Automatic Train Control system SELTRAC, presently in service in Vancouver. Houston's monorail system will be fully automatic and driverless. Sensors along the guidebeam, at switches and on board the trains will monitor the location of each vehicle and status of each subsystem. Computers control the operation at a central control center. Also from this room, stations will be monitored by closed circuit television monitors.

The 4.5 mile light rail segment of the system will be modeled after Portland's MAX, which uses Bombardier equipment. Vehicles travel at up to 55 mph, with passenger capacity of 76 seated and 110 standees per car.

Stations will be designed by area architects with the input of community leaders to incorporate neighborhood themes into the design. The open-air stations, again based on Portland's MAX, will be well lit and equipped with direct phone links to security personnel to supplement video monitors. Elevators and escalators will provide access to the handicapped. At the entrance to each station will be self-service ticket vending machines; passengers will be on the honor system. The initial train lengths will use two thirds of the platform length, allowing for eventual capacity expansion. Power will be provided by Houston Lighting and Power's local power grid, with total demand for power not requiring major additions to existing generating capacity. Power substations will be located at approximately one-mile intervals along the guideway, converting the power to 750 d.c. The total initial system cost is estimated at $1.09 billion (in constant 1988 dollars). Of this, $570 million would come from federal grants, $145 million of which is already committed. Local sales tax revenues would provide $390 million, and the remaining $130 million would come from private sources. TGI, Lehman Brothers, and JMB have analyzed options for private sector financing, which range from up front interim construction financing programs (which would generate early contributions) to medium and long term real estate development related opportunities.

This is not Houston's first "go" signal for rail transit. Nearly a decade ago, Metro was so confident it would build an 18.5mile rail system that it placed an order with a Japanese company for 130 cars. Metro's hopes were dashed-and the car order was cancelled-when voters overwhelmingly rejected a $2.5 billion bond issue (RA, Aug. 1983, p. 27). In the autopsy that followed the death of that plan, it was concluded that there had been too little communication with the citizenry, which perceived that too much money would be spent to serve too few people.

Metro hopes that this time around, it has done its homework better.

In a 1988 referendum, 60% of Houston voters were in favor of Metro proceeding with rail transit, general mobility, bus purchase and transit way projects.

Critics of the system argue that Houstonians will not give up their automobiles. However, a Metro spokeman points out that commuter bus services are already well used.

Houston Mayor Kathy Whitmire is an active supporter of rail transit who has

lobbied for Metro on a state and national level. After the Metro Board's vote, she said, "I think Houston needs a rapid transit system to move us into the next century and we're now a step closer to getting it done. " N

COPYRIGHT 1991 Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation
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