A Comprehensive Look at the Metropolitan Transit Authority of
Harris County, Houston, Texas
History & Future
The Texas State Legislature authorized the creation of local transit authorities in 1973. In 1978, Houston-area voters created METRO and approved a one-cent sales tax to support its operations. METRO opened for business in January 1979. The Authority has transformed a broken bus fleet into a regional multimodal transportation system.
Communities that are part of the METRO area include the cities of Houston, Bellaire, Bunker Hill Village, El Lago, Hedwig Village, Hilshire Village, Humble, Hunters Creek, Katy, Missouri City, Piney Point, Southside Place, Spring Valley, Taylor Lake Village and West University Place. Major portions of unincorporated Harris County are also included.
METRO Solutions
In development since 2001, METRO Solutions is a comprehensive transit system plan to help solve the Greater Houston region's traffic congestion and air quality problems. The plan was crafted with extensive input from the public, METRO's regional transportation partners and mobility experts nationwide. The plan was adopted by the METRO Board of Directors in July 2003 and approved by voters in November 2003. METRO Solutions >>
The plan calls for major multimodal transit improvements across the region and extends through 2014 the General Mobility Program, which sets aside one-quarter of METRO's one-cent sales tax revenue for mobility projects in Harris County, the City of Houston and the Multi-Cities. In addition, voters granted METRO the authority to issue up to $640 million in bonds to fund the next phase of projects.
In June 2005, METRO announced its Phase 2 Implementation Plan to provide more rapid transit for the Houston region in less time than originally proposed under METRO Solutions. Key components of the Implementation Plan include:
30 Miles of Light Rail Transit
- University of Houston/Downtown Campus Station of Red Line to a new Northern Intermodal Facility, located in the vicinity of Burnett Street
- University Line, running from University of Houston/Central Campus in Southeast Houston to the Redline, crossing in the vicinity of the Wheeler Station and continuing west to the Uptown Area, connecting to the Greenway Plaza and Uptown/Galleria activity centers.
- North Corridor, from Northern Intermodal Facility to Northline Mall
- Southeast Corridor, from Downtown Houston to vicinity of Martin Luther King at Griggs
- East End, from Downtown Houston to Magnolia Transit Center
- Uptown Corridor, from vicinity of Westpark/South Rice to Northwest Transit Center
Accelerate other components of the 2025 METRO Solutions Plan, to provide more regional service, including: 28 Miles of Commuter Rail
- US 90A, connecting to Fannin South Station
- US 290, connecting to Northern Intermodal Facility
- Galveston Line, project development in progress
40 Miles of Signature Bus/Suburban Bus Rapid Transit
Fast crosstown service using specially designated stops/"stations"; queue jumpers; and designated buses that together provide a cohesive, recognizable route serving activity centers and defined destinations.
- Southeast Transit Center to Texas Medical Center
- Uptown Houston to US 90A Commuter Rail line
- Gessner Route
- US 249/Tidwell Route
Intermodal Facilities, Transit Centers, and Park & Rides*
- Northern Intermodal Facility
- 5 Transit Centers:
- Wheeler
- Hobby Airport
- Westpark/South Rice
- UH-Central Campus
- TSU
- 4 Park & Rides
- Cypress
- Gulf Freeway/Clear Lake
- SH 288/Airport
- Katy Freeway/Grand Parkway
HOT/HOV Lanes
Begin the conversion to dual direction tolled facilities in major corridors in existing Bus/HOV Corridors.
Red Line Capacity Upgrade
Upgrades to allow additional capacity to meet the growing demand for the system, including additional vehicles and operating facility/running facility improvements.
Headquarters
Lee P. Brown METRO Administration Building
1900 Main St.
Houston, Texas 77002
METRO Board of Directors
The Board of Directors has nine members. Five are nominated by the Mayor of Houston and confirmed by the Houston City Council. Two are appointed by the mayors of METRO's 14 other member cities. Two are nominated by the Harris County Judge and confirmed by the County Commissioners.
Monthly Board Meetings are typically held at 1 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of each month in the Lee P. Brown METRO Administration Building, 1900 Main St., 2nd Floor.
More than 3,550 employees.
Operations & Support Facilities
Buffalo Bayou
810 N. San Jacinto Street
Houston, TX 77002 |
Hiram Clarke
4175 Uptown Drive
Houston, TX 77023 |
Northwest
5555 Deauville Plaza Drive
Houston, TX 77092 |
Central Stores
1220 McCarty Street
Houston, TX 77029 |
Kashmere
5700 Eastex Freeway
Houston, TX 77026 |
Polk Street
5700 Polk Street
Houston, TX 77023 |
Fallbrook
111 Fallbrook Drive
Houston, TX 77038 |
METROLift Contract Facility
2800 Polk Street
Houston, TX 77003 |
West
11555 Westpark Drive
Houston, TX 77082 |
Field Service Center
1215 Labco
Houston, TX 77029 |
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Houston TranStar
6922 Old Katy Road
METRO is an active partner in the operation of Houston TranStar, the region's state-of-the art traffic and emergency management center. Using Houston TranStar's collection of Intelligent Transportation System technologies, METRO is able to provide better service to the Authority's patrons. Progams operated from Houston TranStar include METRO bus and METRORail dispatch, traffic signalization systems, freeway management systems and incident management programs. METRO's partners in TranStar are the Texas Department of Transportation, the City of Houston and Harris County.
METRO Services
METRORail
The METRORail Red Line is a 7.5-mile light rail service running from the University of Houston-Downtown to south of Reliant Park along Main, Fannin and San Jacinto streets.
METRORail features 16 conveniently located Rail Stations, which provide access to many of the city's major employment, cultural/ entertainment, education and medical centers. Major METRORail destinations include Downtown, Midtown, the Museum District, Hermann Park/Houston Zoo, Texas Medical Center and Reliant Park.
METRORail hours of operation are 4:30 a.m. to 12:45 a.m. Monday through Thursday, 4:30 a.m. to 2:15 a.m. Friday, 5:30 a.m. to 2:15 a.m. Saturday, and 5:30 a.m. to 12:45 a.m. Sunday. Parking is available at the Fannin South Park & Ride, adjacent to the Fannin South Rail Station, as well as various points along the rail line.
METROLift
METROLift provides pre-scheduled, curb-to-curb transportation for persons with disabilities who cannot ride fixed-route bus service. Call 713-225-0119 between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. to obtain eligibility materials. One-way tickets cost $1.15 and can be purchased at all METRO RideStores and METROStops.
Eligible riders should call 713-225-6716 one day in advance to schedule a ride. Trips are scheduled on a first-call, first-scheduled basis between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday
HOV Lanes
A High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane is a barrier-protected lane - usually in the median of a freeway - that is open to buses, vanpools/ carpools and motorcycles. The lanes, which are accessed via freeway or facility ramps, are reversible to accommodate commuters during peak periods of traffic flow. Users must observe the occupancy requirements, rules of the road and hours of operation.
HOV lanes operate on the Southwest, Gulf, Katy, North, Eastex and Northwest freeways.
HOV lanes are open 5 a.m. to 11 a.m. Monday through Friday for inbound traffic (5 a.m. to noon on the Katy HOV only), and 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday for outbound traffic (1 p.m. to 8 p.m. on the Katy HOV only). A minimum occupancy of two people is required on the HOV lane system. (a minimum of three occupants is required during morning and/or evening rush hours on the Katy and Northwest HOV lanes).
The Katy HOV is the only HOV lane open on weekends. Weekend hours of operation are outbound 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and inbound 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday.
Since 2001, METRO also has been operating concurrent-flow Diamond HOV Lanes, which are identified by diamond-shape icons in a lane separated from main-lane traffic by double solid white lines. Diamond HOV Lanes in the METRO service area are located on the Katy Freeway between Texas 6 and Texas 99 (Grand Parkway) in Katy.
METRO's QuickRide program offers motorists the option of paying to use the Katy and Northwest HOV lanes with a minimum occupancy of two during morning and/or evening rush hours. For only $2 each way, QuickRide allows two-person vehicles to operate on the Northwest HOV during the morning rush hour (6:45 to 8 a.m.) and the Katy HOV during morning and evening rush hours (5 p.m. to 6 p.m.).
QuickRide trips are recorded via an EZ Tag-style electronic transponder attached to the interior of the user's vehicle. For program costs, billing requirements and other details, call QuickRide at 713-224-RIDE or 888-606-RIDE (toll-free).
Park & Ride Lots
METRO has 28 Park & Ride lots with about 33,300 available parking spaces. Direct nonstop service to Downtown, the Texas Medical Center or other major employment centers in the METRO service area is available from all Park & Ride lots except Mission Bend and Missouri City, which provide Express and Local service. Park & Ride facilities also serve as staging areas for vanpools and carpools, including the Bay Area Park & Pool lot with 207 parking spaces.
Transit Centers
Transit centers are sheltered waiting areas located where several bus routes and/or METRORail converge. METRO's 19 transit centers serve as efficient "hubs" to allow bus and/or METRORail riders from various locations to assemble at a central point to take advantage of express trips or other route-to-route transfers. Our clean, safe and comfortable transit centers provide bus and/or METRORail patrons with a wider selection of destinations through greater transfer opportunities and offer their respective communities a permanent presence of transit service. Transit Centers feature a mixture of Park & Ride and Local bus service as well as limited METRORail service. Limited parking - approximately 2,400 spaces - is available at select transit centers.Customer Services
Customer Information Center - Customer Information Specialists can provide METRO service information 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekends and holidays by calling METROLine at 713-635-4000. Bilingual CIC personnel are available to provide service information in Spanish.
Lost & Found - METRO's Lost & Found personnel work hard to help reunite customers and their valuables. Depending on the approximate value of the found item, METRO will hold it for 30 to 60 days (after which time, personal items are destroyed, while items in usable condition are donated to area charities). To assist METRO personnel in locating lost items, patrons are encouraged to record the route name/number, approximate time and bus/train I.D. number (if possible).
Lost & Found Office
1900 Main St. • 713-658-0854
7:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. weekdays
METRO Web site (www.ridemetro.org) - METRO's Internet Web site offers information on schedules, fares and services; maps of Park & Ride and Transit Center locations; special event shuttles; detours; job opportunities; and public meetings. The METROLink feature delivers up-to-date schedule and service changes to registered users via e-mail.
Employer and Commuter Services
METRO provides a variety of information and services to area employers and employees, such as commuter tax benefit information, organizing vanpools/carpools, computerized ride matching, origin/destination mapping and on-site events.
RideSponsor - This program helps area companies and groups encourage employees and members to ride METRO as a way to relieve demand for parking and improve air quality. For information, call 713-652-4311.
RideShare - This free program provides RideShare matching services for commuters to form vanpools and carpools anywhere in the eight-county region. METRO's network of HOV lanes is used to bypass congestion and allow commuters to get to work or home faster. For information about RideShare, call 713-224-RIDE, or toll-free, 1-888-606-RIDE.
METROVan - If a group has at least seven people willing to leave behind their cars and ride together, the group is eligible for METROVan service and incentives of $35 per rider per month to help underwrite the cost of the vanpool. METROVan is ideal for those who live or work where METRO bus service is not available. Vanpooling helps save on daily travel expenses such as parking and the wear and tear on personal vehicles. Vanpools that begin or end anywhere in the eightcounty region are eligible for the $35 per rider incentives per month. For more information, call 713-224-RIDE, or toll-free, 1-888-606-RIDE.
Guaranteed RideHome - Qualified METRO commuters can get home in the middle of a workday, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, should they have an emergency and there is no midday bus service available on their route. METRO will arrange free immediate transportation, usually a taxi ride. Errands or other nonemergencies do not qualify. For more information or to register for this program, call 713-224-RIDE or visit METRO's Web site.
Regional Mobility Improvements
Motorist Assistance Program - METRO, the Harris County Sheriff's Department, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), the Houston Automobile Dealers Association and Houston Cellular Telephone Company sponsor the Motorist Assistance Program (MAP) with trucks and vans, which are staffed by Harris County Sheriff's Office deputies. The white-colored MAP vehicles, which display the sponsors' logos, patrol about 150 miles of freeway around Houston. The MAP service operates from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. weekdays to relieve freeway congestion by assisting disabled vehicles and with traffic accidents. MAP vehicles are equipped with gasoline, water, hand tools, jumper cables and push bumpers. Call for a MAP van by dialing 713-CALL MAP to report a stalled vehicle or an accident. For Cingular Wireless customers, the call is free.
Street Construction - METRO plays a major role in construction projects throughout the Greater Houston region,
allocating $ 100 million annually to the city of Houston, Harris County and the
multi-cities.
Useful Numbers
| Board Members |
713-739-4842 |
| Executive Office |
713-739-4832 |
| Community Outreach |
713-739-4018 |
| Hearing and Speech Impaired |
713-635-6993 |
| Customer Service |
713-658-0180 |
| METROLift Information |
713-225-0119 |
| METROLine |
713-635-4000 |
| RideShare |
713-224-RIDE |
| Lost & Found |
713-658-0854 |
| METRO Police |
713-224-COPS |
| Media Information |
713-739-4040 |
If you need more facts about METRO, direct your e-mail to rr02@ridemetro.org
Learn more About METRO
