On September 28, 2012, METRO's Board of Directors placed the US 90A/Southwest Rail Corridor project on hold to reassess investment priorities in the region.

Project Description

The proposed US 90A/Southwest Rail Corridor is approximately nine miles of new construction starting at Missouri City to the Fannin South Rail Station, merging with the existing METRORail Red Line up to Wheeler Station. The proposed line would directly serve Reliant Park, the Texas Medical Center, Rice University, the Houston Zoo, Hermann Park and the Museum District.

The Study Area

The US 90A/Southwest Rail Corridor study area, as shown below, is defined as beginning at South Gessner Road/FM 2234 and US 90A and generally extending northeast to the southern terminus of the existing METRORail Red Line at Fannin South Station.

The US90A / Southwest Rail Corridor Overview Map The US 90A/Southwest Rail corridor links Harris County with Fort Bend County along US 90A and the parallel Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR). Over the past few decades, both Fort Bend County and Harris County have experienced steady and significant population and employment growth. The 2010 population in the study area is estimated to increase 25 percent by 2035. Over the same period, Harris County is projected to increase in population by 41 percent and Fort Bend County by 60 percent.

The strongest travel patterns for the US 90A/Southwest Rail corridor study area currently exist to and from the TMC, with about 24,000 daily trips, approximately 33 percent of the total work trips. This relationship is expected to continue, and daily trips are projected to increase to nearly 32,000 by 2035, an increase of about 32 percent. Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) also estimates that trips along US 90A to all major employment centers, such as downtown Houston, Uptown/Galleria, and Greenway Plaza in Houston will increase approximately 37 percent in that same time period. 

 

Key Milestones Achieved

June 2012: Public meetings
June 2011 - March 2012: Evaluation of alternatives identified through scoping
February 2011: Scoping
January 2011: METRO initiates EIS for US90A Southwest Rail Corridor

NOTE: To provide your comments online, please select the "US90A/Southwest Rail Corridor" from the "Topic/Category" drop-down menu.)

 

Timeline and Key Milestones of the Project

On-going public involvement Timeline and Key Milestones from 2011 - 2018

Public Meetings, June 2012

METRO is preparing to host a second round of public meetings for the US90A/Southwest Rail Corridor project in the first week of June. The purpose of these meetings is to inform the public about the alternatives that will be evaluated further in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), the process used to evaluate the alternatives and seek input regarding these and any specific environmental concerns. For more information, please the US90A Project newsletter. The meetings will be in an open house format at the below mentioned times and locations.

  • June 5, 2012
    11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
    Texas Medical Center Food Court Area, Waterside Café
    6550 Bertner St # 1
    Houston, TX 77030
  • June 5, 2012
    6 - 8 p.m.
    Westbury High School Atrium
    11911 Chimney Rock
    Houston, TX 77035
  • June 7, 2012
    6 - 8 p.m.
    (REVISED LOCATION)
  • Together We Stand Christian Church
    1432 Texas Parkway
    Missouri City, Texas 77489
    (Next door to the Missouri City Civic Center)
  • June 12, 2012
    6 - 8 p.m.
    The Power Center Southeast Ballroom
    12401 S. Post Oak Road
    Houston, TX 77045

NOTE: To provide your comments online, please select the "US90A/Southwest Rail Corridor" from the "Topic/Category" drop-down menu.)

Next Steps
• Conduct detailed analysis of alternatives in the DEIS
• Submit draft of the DEIS to the FTA for approval in Fall 2012.
• Publish DEIS and conduct public hearing in Winter 2013
• Prepare final EIS in 2013

 

 

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