Jul. 22--Faster and more accessible bus service along Scott is coming, along with a deal between Metro and county officials that transit officials hope will become the template for transit enhancements in the region.
Metropolitan Transit Authority and Harris County Precinct One are finalizing an agreement that would see Commissioner Rodney Ellis' office contribute up to $4.1 million for street and sidewalk improvements mostly along Scott south of Loop 610 to the MLK Clinic near Almeda Genoa. Metro would build the rest of the route along Scott north and then along McGowen into the Downtown Transit Center. Metro's board is scheduled to consider the agreement Thursday.
Ellis said the project is an ideal candidate for investment, noting it met his criteria for using county money because his funds will help direct Metro money to an often-neglected part of the city.
"I want to make sure I am using county dollars in the city by and large in places that would not be able to get those projects without us stepping up." Ellis said, touting the benefits of better transit to Sunnyside, where he grew up.
The work will not wait for the riders Metro has lost to COVID to return. Under the proposed agreement between Metro and Precinct One, the county will oversee installation of 6.3 miles of wider sidewalks, 14 repainted or redesigned street crosswalks, 185 ramps required for easier wheelchair access to sidewalks, 37 spots where the street will be rebuilt and 51 new bus stops. Metro will take the proposed changes out to the community, then refine them, meaning construction is about a year away, said Amar Mohite, director of planning and infrastructure for Precinct One.
Near Scott and Reed Road, Carmen Solis, 26, said shade and light are needed. Waiting at the stop in the Houston sun can be "painful." Getting off the bus after dark can be tense, Solis said, adding streetlights in the area often are neglected.
"You can't see where you're going, or who is coming up on you," she said.
Long, hot waits and safety are what the corridor improvements are supposed to address, said officials who hope bus use will increase and riders will have better feelings about the system.
The Scott line, following the existing Route 54 bus line, is among the first of 17 so-called BOOST corridors planned by Metro. Plans for the corridors -- an acronym for "bus operations optimized system treatments" -- include sidewalks to and from bus stops that have new shelters, electronic displays that provide real-time information on bus arrivals, lighting and connections to nearby bike and running trails.
BOOST corridors also rely on buses having signal priority with traffic lights to make trips faster. Buses are outfitted with beacons that signal their locations, allowing traffic lights to continue a green light slightly longer to let a bus pass, or start the countdown from a red light back to green to get the bus moving again.
Among high-frequency routes where buses arrive every 15 minutes or less most of the day, Scott consistently has the fifth-highest ridership with about 6,500 daily passengers, prior to the pandemic. Since the pandemic began, ridership along most Metro routes has dropped to less than half typical use, with Scott carrying about 3,500 daily in May according to Metro's monthly ridership report.
Based on a Metro analysis of the corridor, 3,700 households within a half-mile of the Scott route south of downtown do not own a car.
"A lack of transportation options is something that is a big problem in the community to get people connected to jobs," Ellis said.
Dozens of bus stops along the route could use some TLC, simply to get them back to even usable shape for most riders. At Scott and Mallow, trash and discarded chairs -- along with a long-abandoned pay phone stall -- sit next to the uneven sidewalk.
Ellis said he is hopeful the new work can remedy some of the trash issues, noting an improved street could give people more pride in the community. Perhaps, he said, improvements could spur commercial businesses to spruce up, something that could draw attention from the city.
"Maybe that frees up the city to use its resources to clean it up," Ellis said.
Ellis' office in the past two years has committed up to $30 million -- $15 million in two separate projects -- for street rebuilding in Precinct One within Houston city limits. Those projects, along with drainage and street improvements, also add sidewalks and bike lanes that add travel options which Ellis identifies as high-priority for the communities.
Metro meanwhile is hoping the deal is a template for the other 16 corridors.
"The challenge is to take this model and see if we can replicate it," said Metro board member Sanjay Ramabhadran, chairman of the board's capital projects committee.
Metro plans $7.5 billion in various projects around the region over the next two decades, following voter approval of a bond package in November.
That election eight months ago came in a very different environment, however. The pandemic has devastated Metro's ridership and many predict some changes to the region's commuting habits are inevitable, including a rise in working from home and telecommuting.
"When it does get back to normal ... you may not see the same percentage of folks go back to work," Metro board member Terry Morales said.
dug.begley@chron.com
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