Report: 14 billion dollar deal for Bullet train from Houston to Dallas is done

[Dnaguy 12,574]

37 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

One step closer https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/transportation/article/houston-dallas-bullet-train-federal-approval-texas-15582761.php

 

 

Way deep down south, where we play this game
It's them Japanese and you, we call it the train
So if you wanna ride your thing
Just come on down the train
We gonna rock, ooh, Lord, just jump aboard, baby
So get your next of kin, your sister and your friend
Pack it up now
Choo, choo, ride on this, choo, choo
And, boo, you need to stop faking, and come on with me

 

I wanna take you home with me, to be alone with me
And I can see you wanna hide it, come on, just divide it
And please don't knock it, until you ride it
So to all of you cities, you know, I'm calling your name

Houston, Dallas and College Station wanna ride this train, ride out now

 

Come on, ride the train, hey, ride it....
 

 

[SquishMitten 10,493]

The aggy stop is just so aggy. All it's going to do is slow things down.

I would imagine most trains wouldn’t make that stop. Can’t imagine the ridership would warrant more than a couple stops there per day.

[elfenix 34,658]

last week a state legislator was all worked up because he doesn't know what deeds of trust are (or, at least, pretended he doesn't know).  which lead to a bunch of dumb headlines that texas central had deeded land to the japanese government.  and breathless bullshit from workman about not disclosing the security arrangement to landowners. 

Edited September 21, 2020 by elfenix

[Ignatius 4,125]

On 2/24/2020 at 5:13 PM, atomheartbevo said:

Wait, are you claiming that I-35 between Austin and through Dallas was finished over a decade ago, and the last 20 years of shitty contraction traffic are a figment of my imagination?

My oldest is in first grade.  He will most likely never see 35 between Austin and Dallas be construction free before he finishes college.  

He’s only going to see that if he stays in college until he’s 75

[El Diablo 4,232]

3 hours ago, Ignatius said:

He’s only going to see that if he stays in college until he’s 75

One of my brothers was a senior project engineer for TXDoT Ft Worth District. Graduated UT in '78 I think and then had a30 year career there. Spent the entire 30 years working on one stretch of road. Concept, design, build, maintain, repair, upgrade, retool, more design, more build, widen it, new surface etc... Now he's retired from the state and what does he do? Consulting. On that same stretch of road.

[Hank Scorpio 17,924]

Your brother 100% fucks that road. 

[Steel Shank 9,533]

14 minutes ago, Hank Scorpio said:

Your brother 100% fucks that road. 

And lays pipe, too.

[Updawg 2,378]

One of my brothers was a senior project engineer for TXDoT Ft Worth District. Graduated UT in '78 I think and then had a30 year career there. Spent the entire 30 years working on one stretch of road. Concept, design, build, maintain, repair, upgrade, retool, more design, more build, widen it, new surface etc... Now he's retired from the state and what does he do? Consulting. On that same stretch of road.

That’s pretty awesome/sad. Same could be said for many other highways outside of Austin. Unfortunately we just get minor shit unless it’s a toll road. Or they want to fuck up a road like mopac

[atomheartbevo 90,549]

6 hours ago, SquishMitten said:

I would imagine most trains wouldn’t make that stop. Can’t imagine the ridership would warrant more than a couple stops there per day.

So....would you say they just ran out of passengers?

[El Diablo 4,232]

2 hours ago, Updawg said:

That’s pretty awesome/sad. Same could be said for many other highways outside of Austin. Unfortunately we just get minor shit unless it’s a toll road. Or they want to fuck up a road like mopac

Those years where there happens to be no construction going on, they're back in the cave doing design work. It never, ever ends and when there are budget cuts and shortfalls and these projects get behind schedule they play a lot of paper football in the lunch room. 

[Pasken 1,310]

11 hours ago, Updawg said:

That’s pretty awesome/sad. Same could be said for many other highways outside of Austin. Unfortunately we just get minor shit unless it’s a toll road. Or they want to fuck up a road like mopac

I just don't understand the hate for the toll roads. Tolls were removed from the coming Oak Hill project and 35 project and as a result 50+ other projects in the Austin metro area had to be killed to pay for it. There is no such thing as a "free" highway.

So the next time you are stuck on Lamar because a train is passing just remind yourself it's ok that the grade separation project was canceled because it means people coming from Lake Travis into Austin won't have to pay a toll to use the highway.

Edited September 22, 2020 by Pasken

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,708]

Toll roads/lanes are the best. People who can afford it, get to where they need to be faster, and they're removed from the free alternative which lowers the traffic on the free road. Win/win for both, even though the drivers on the free road can never see that.

[Rougarou 594]

1 hour ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

Toll roads/lanes are the best. People who can afford it, get to where they need to be faster, and they're removed from the free alternative which lowers the traffic on the free road. Win/win for both, even though the drivers on the free road can never see that.

 

1 hour ago, Pasken said:

I just don't understand the hate for the toll roads. Tolls were removed from the coming Oak Hill project and 35 project and as a result 50+ other projects in the Austin metro area had to be killed to pay for it. There is no such thing as a "free" highway.

So the next time you are stuck on Lamar because a train is passing just remind yourself it's ok that the grade separation project was canceled because it means people coming from Lake Travis into Austin won't have to pay a toll to use the highway.

These are so true.

[BabaYaga 15,532]

[Wally Fairway 5,664]

15 hours ago, El Diablo said:

One of my brothers was a senior project engineer for TXDoT Ft Worth District. Graduated UT in '78 I think and then had a30 year career there. Spent the entire 30 years working on one stretch of road. Concept, design, build, maintain, repair, upgrade, retool, more design, more build, widen it, new surface etc... Now he's retired from the state and what does he do? Consulting. On that same stretch of road.

It's the Gulf Freeway isn't it - it was under construction when I moved to Houston over 40 years ago, the entire time I was there and everytime I go back. 
I wish I was smart enough to have manufactured and rented orange traffic barrels, low tech business that ain't never gonna end

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,708]

41 minutes ago, Wally Fairway said:

It's the Gulf Freeway isn't it - it was under construction when I moved to Houston over 40 years ago, the entire time I was there and everytime I go back. 
I wish I was smart enough to have manufactured and rented orange traffic barrels, low tech business that ain't never gonna end

why does anyone expect freeways to not be under constant maintenance? Unless you are ok with them shutting down a large stretch every 10 years or so for 6+ months.

Not to mention, when has Houston had a stable 25 year period that we don't need to upgrade freeways?

[Pasken 1,310]

9 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

why does anyone expect freeways to not be under constant maintenance? Unless you are ok with them shutting down a large stretch every 10 years or so for 6+ months.

Not to mention, when has Houston had a stable 25 year period that we don't need to upgrade freeways?

The relocation of 45 in central Houston is going to be a doozy. 

[El Diablo 4,232]

3 hours ago, Wally Fairway said:

It's the Gulf Freeway isn't it - it was under construction when I moved to Houston over 40 years ago, the entire time I was there and everytime I go back. 
I wish I was smart enough to have manufactured and rented orange traffic barrels, low tech business that ain't never gonna end

Ft Mirth District, I-35 and I-30 intersection. What came to be the mixmaster. 

[Wally Fairway 5,664]

41 minutes ago, Pasken said:

The relocation of 45 in central Houston is going to be a doozy. 

Flying cars gonna mean you don't need to move it (they are coming in 3-5 years....I've been hearing that my entire life, and but then I'm younger than Brat so see what he says)

[gmr548 16,681]

The aggy stop is just so aggy. All it's going to do is slow things down.

I for one think the addition of a steep roller coaster drop makes the train way more fun

[TKthunder2 5,058]

9 hours ago, Rougarou said:

 

These are so true.

These are true, and I’m a Libertarian but toll roads suck.  For example 183A fucked over anyone that lives down Lakeline or Avery Ranch and then they didn’t even build an access road for people to get up to 1431.  They are adding that access road soon thanks to a recent state house bill but still people wanting to exit Lakeline/AR will be suck paying that toll for decades to come.  The right way to do a toll road is what they are doing on 183 South between 35 and the airport.  Anyways that’s a topic for another thread.

[XYZ 2,154]

11 hours ago, Pasken said:

I just don't understand the hate for the toll roads.

Might have something to do with the central Texas toll authority having the worst fucking customer service of any enterprise in the history of the world. Also some people might feel deceived by the SH-130 project.

[RPM 26,562]

41 minutes ago, TKthunder2 said:

The right way to do a toll road is what they are doing on 183 South between 35 and the airport.  Anyways that’s a topic for another thread.

The right way to build a toll road is do it in another state.

[Trey3216 15,450]

45 minutes ago, XYZ said:

Might have something to do with the central Texas toll authority having the worst fucking customer service of any enterprise in the history of the world. Also some people might feel deceived by the SH-130 project.

It can’t be worse than the NTTA.  

[DaysOff 8,157]

Ft Mirth District, I-35 and I-30 intersection. What came to be the mixmaster. 

The first time I landed at Love Field I was told to turn base over the mixmaster. Native Houstonian. What the fuck is a mixmaster; all while trying to configure for landing. I know now.

[Mack Tripper 703]

The first time I landed at Love Field I was told to turn base over the mixmaster. Native Houstonian. What the fuck is a mixmaster; all while trying to configure for landing. I know now.

Mixmaster/ high five in Dallas = any random interchange in Houston without the hand jobs and bragging and carrying on. A Dallas Uber driver was bragging to me about the high five and I was like what are you blathering about?

[Pasken 1,310]

3 hours ago, XYZ said:

Might have something to do with the central Texas toll authority having the worst fucking customer service of any enterprise in the history of the world. Also some people might feel deceived by the SH-130 project.

Deceived how?

[Rholl 220]

14 hours ago, Wally Fairway said:

Flying cars gonna mean you don't need to move it (they are coming in 3-5 years....I've been hearing that my entire life, and but then I'm younger than Brat so see what he says)

never gonna be any flying cars.... the average dumb motha fukka cant be counted on to drop $5 worth in his gas tank..... where that 5000 lb POS gonna fall outta the sky?????

[Dnaguy 12,574]

1 hour ago, Rholl said:

never gonna be any flying cars.... the average dumb motha fukka cant be counted on to drop $5 worth in his gas tank..... where that 5000 lb POS gonna fall outta the sky?????

Gas? Gas?! Do you even Mr. Fusion, brah?

[gmr548 16,681]

The first time I landed at Love Field I was told to turn base over the mixmaster. Native Houstonian. What the fuck is a mixmaster; all while trying to configure for landing. I know now.

Lol you don't see the irony here huh?

[Horn Under a Bad Sign 20,837]

On 9/21/2020 at 3:42 PM, SquishMitten said:

I would imagine most trains wouldn’t make that stop. Can’t imagine the ridership would warrant more than a couple stops there per day.

 

Hard to stop in College Station, what with the tobacco spit all over the rails.

[smuggs 9,394]

13 hours ago, DaysOff said:

What the fuck is a mixmaster;

 

 

[clapclapclap 9,000]

4 hours ago, gmr548 said:

13 hours ago, DaysOff said:

The first time I landed at Love Field I was told to turn base over the mixmaster. Native Houstonian. What the fuck is a mixmaster; all while trying to configure for landing. I know now.

Lol you don't see the irony here huh?

Is that what they call the 183/114/Loop 12/Spur 482 interchange?

[TKthunder2 5,058]

8 hours ago, Rholl said:

never gonna be any flying cars.... the average dumb motha fukka cant be counted on to drop $5 worth in his gas tank..... where that 5000 lb POS gonna fall outta the sky?????

They wouldn’t be owned individually, that would be a giant mess.  Think sky taxis.

[XYZ 2,154]

On 9/22/2020 at 11:54 PM, Pasken said:

Deceived how?

They sold it to the public as “the 18 wheelers that clog I-35 will take SH-130”.

[Pasken 1,310]

1 hour ago, XYZ said:

They sold it to the public as “the 18 wheelers that clog I-35 will take SH-130”.

A lot of 18 wheelers do take 130. They never said all of them would because many are serving businesses in austin or heading NW via 183.

[Zepol87 9,308]

On 9/23/2020 at 12:03 PM, clapclapclap said:

Is that what they call the 183/114/Loop 12/Spur 482 interchange?

I have never heard that specific interchange called that but I guess it would fit

[AUS-97HORN 11,991]

22 hours ago, Pasken said:

A lot of 18 wheelers do take 130. They never said all of them would because many are serving businesses in austin or heading NW via 183.

I would LOVE to see the numbers on that.  

Specifically how many transiting 18 wheelers going from South of San Antonio to North of Georgetown are taking the toll road vs how many are just saying fuck it, lets just deal with the i35 congestion.

This Texas Monthly article from 2017 specifically talks about how the road's main presented purpose (pulling transiting18 wheelers off i35) was at ONE percent when charged the full Toll Fee.   and that number goes up to about 36% when the fee keeps being reduced to the same price as cars.

 

But the 22 extra miles of the route  (which a full loaded 18 wheeler gets between 5-6 miles to the Diesel gallon) plus the $8-16 truck toll rate) means the average 18 wheeler is only saving 15-20 mins to take Toll 130 the whole way, and that road costs them on average $18.50-27.50 extra to take the road ($3/gal diesel)

 

 

[XYZ 2,154]

They should have made it MANDATORY for 18 wheelers going through Austin to take 130. Tough shit if it cost them money.

[Armybrat 41,323]

It will cost the consumers money, not the trucking company.

[Kyle 207]

Tempted to oppose only for the stupid aggy stop. Going to turn a nice train ride into a bus full of gomers.

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,708]

On 9/27/2020 at 11:49 AM, XYZ said:

They sold it to the public as “the 18 wheelers that clog I-35 will take SH-130”.

There are many comments attributed to "they" but no one can ever point to an exact statement.

Many people in Houston falsely claim that Houston/Harris County promised that the toll roads, specifically Sam Houston Tollway, would be free once the initial construction costs were paid off. However, no one can ever produce a statement or board meeting where that was stated by the county. Yes, it's possible that a politician made an offhand comment at some unofficial meeting but people are wrong when they say the county proclaimed it. But I've heard this story many times at backyard BBQs but it's actually just a myth repeated a million times about how the govt is screwing everyone over.

I doubt that any Austin politician guaranteed that every truck would bypass central Austin by taking the toll road. It's impossible to make that guarantee.

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,708]

A big obstacle for Texas Central is Kevin Brady. His congressional district barely in within the proposed rail line but he might be more upset that it could negatively impact I-45. You potentially don't need as many I-45 construction projects if a certain number of cars are not on I-45. And while I doubt this take away a substantial number of cars, he seems to think so.

[atomheartbevo 90,549]

2 hours ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

A big obstacle for Texas Central is Kevin Brady. His congressional district barely in within the proposed rail line but he might be more upset that it could negatively impact I-45. You potentially don't need as many I-45 construction projects if a certain number of cars are not on I-45. And while I doubt this take away a substantial number of cars, he seems to think so.

It doesn't take many pissed-off gas station owners/rest stops/etc. to make things uncomfortable for him. 

[DCA_HORN 725]

$20 billion. Proper people will get their beaks wet of course but we will end up with a real choo choo train.This is Texas not California after all.
 

Theres no way this things gets finished before 2050 if ever and there will be at least $100 billion spent.

[atomheartbevo 90,549]

1 hour ago, DCA_HORN said:

On 9/13/2019 at 9:53 PM, Crusher said:

$20 billion. Proper people will get their beaks wet of course but we will end up with a real choo choo train.This is Texas not California after all.
 

Theres no way this things gets finished before 2050 if ever and there will be at least $100 billion spent.

Even if it gets finished, given that this is Texas, within a few years, it will have to be rebuilt again.

[elfenix 34,658]

26 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

Even if it gets finished, given that this is Texas, within a few years, it will have to be rebuilt again.

keep the allen stadium people away from it

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,708]

Good as place to any to talk rail. I’m a fan of improving transportation and believe that a HSR between Houston and Dallas would be successful but I’m unsure of an overhaul of the entire Amtrak map.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/02/economy/biden-amtrak-infrastructure/index.html

I don’t see the payoff on big investments on long western passenger rail. Focus instead on shorter routes especially ones that do not require sleeping cars. I just don’t see a big demand for people that want to take a train from Dallas to LA or Houston Chicago. It’s not zero but it’s also not 100s per day. And if cost is keeping someone from flying that route, then they’re taking a bus.

hopefully the current Admin will also embrace Central Texas Rail. 

[gsoda3 3,358]

On 9/27/2020 at 1:23 PM, Zepol87 said:

I have never heard that specific interchange called that but I guess it would fit

do they not call it the mixmaster anymore?  i haven't lived in dallas since 2000 but the mixmaster was something you heard everyday multiple times if you ever listened to the radio (Traffic reports).

[elfenix 34,658]

Texas Supreme Court declines the case, Texas Central is a railroad under Texas law so can use eminent domain:


https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/transportation/article/Texas-Supreme-Court-sides-with-bullet-train-16258265.php