• FAQ Full List
• How is ridership estimated?
  METRO and the Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) use a shared computer-based tool to forecast future usage of the highway and ridership on various transit services, such as local buses, commuter buses and light rail. This computer-based tool, also called a travel model is a mathematical representation of how travel occurs in this region today and how it will change in the future. (Click here to read more)
• What is GRT?
  Both Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and Light Rail Transit (LRT) are part of a broader family (please click here to read more).
• What is a scoping meeting?
  The purpose of the scoping process is to determine the scope of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to ensure that issues are identified early and properly studied. The end result of scoping is to ensure that the draft EIS produced for public review and comment is thorough and balanced. The scoping process should identify concerns of both the agencies and the affected public and should clearly define the environmental issues and alternatives to be examined in the EIS. If there are important environmental or social impacts that the public wants considered, the time to raise these issues is at the scoping meeting. If there are alternatives to be considered, the scoping meeting is the place to ask that they be analyzed. If there are concepts for minimizing environmental harm that the public would like to see evaluated, these alternatives should be raised at the scoping meeting. In this way, the EIS can be structured to better address public and agency concerns and help lead to better decisions in the end.
• What exactly is the NEPA Process?
  The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a United States environmental law signed on January 1, 1970 by U.S. President Richard Nixon. The law applies only to federal agencies and the programs they fund. It requires that prior to taking any "major" or "significant" action, the federal agency must consider the environmental impacts of that action. Full disclosure of the potential impacts of a federal action before it is taken helps keep the decision-making process open, honest, transparent and cooperative (more).
• What is a corridor?
  In transit/transportation context, the term "corridor" is defined (click on the question to read more)
• What is the life expectancy of a rail car vs. a bus?
  The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) uses 25 years as the life expectancy of a light rail vehicle and 12-18 years as the life expectancy of a bus.
• How many passengers does our current light rail carry in each car? How many passengers will each bus carry?
  Each METRORail vehicle can carry up to 200 passengers. BRT vehicles will be selected through the planning and procurement process. BRT vehicles generally carry between 50-100% of the capacity of LRT vehicles, depending upon the specific vehicle design.
• How many buses can be linked?
  Currently, our light rail has two cars that can be linked/coupled; however, on special occasions, i.e. Superbowl and MLB All-Star Game, three cars can be linked. We can only operate two-car trains at this time because of block length and platform length. The BRT vehicles cannot be linked.
• What is the capital cost per rail car? What is the capital cost per bus?
  Houston Chronicle article by Rad Sallee (July 4th, 2005) states that operating costs have gone up 29%
• What is the operating/maintenance cost per rail car? Per bus?
  The capital cost of a rail car is approximately $3.5 million. The capital cost of a BRT vehicle is approximately $1.1 million. Depending on ridership demand and other variables, BRT is less costly at lower ridership levels and LRT is less costly at higher ridership levels.
• Should METRO's proposed BRT plan meet the community's approval and goes into effect, what will METRO do with the buses once it converts to rail?
  It is anticipated that when a conversion from BRT to LRT is warranted, the BRT vehicles will be used in other parts of the city.
• Can METRO sell its buses to another MTA and if so, does it require FTA approval?
  If declared surplus, the BRT vehicles could be sold to another property without FTA approval.
• Will the proposed rail be embedded or ballast?
  If BRT is to operate over the rail tracks, the tracks would have to be embedded rather than ballast.
• I understand that the cities of Pittsburgh, Phoenix and Charlotte scored the same as Houston (medium-low) and were able to receive full funding grant agreements for their LRT. Why is Houston being singled out under another set of criteria by FTA?
  Pittsburgh, Phoenix and Charlotte were ahead of Houston in the FTA process and were recommended to receive Full Funding Grant Agreements prior to the change in FTA policy requiring at least a "medium" cost effectiveness rating in order to be recommended for funding.
• When will LRT be operating in the East End community? Let's say the BRT life expectance is 12 years. Does this mean we will be stuck with buses for 12 years?
  The conversion from BRT to LRT will be made in the East End community when ridership grows to the level that the additional capability of LRT is justified. The change from BRT to LRT is not based on the life expectancy of BRT vehicles.
• Are there any plans to put other vehicles on the BRT line or use the line as an HOV lane for example?
  There are no plans to make the BRT guideways into HOV lanes.
• Why can't I see the images of the METRO Solutions NewsFlash I get in my email?
  For security reasons, many email clients block images in emails by default. This keeps SPAMMERS who place uniquely identifying invisible images into SPAM messages from harvesting a list of working email addresses (click on the question to see more information).
• Still have questions?
  If you have read through our FAQ and still have questions, please click here.

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