People move through the Wheeler Transit Center on Wednesday afternoon, April 21, 2021, in Houston. Wheeler Transit Center, where the Red Line light rail and various bus routes cross, is a major transfer point in a future transit system, based on Metro's long-range plan.It’s often observed that Houston doesn’t just have one “downtown,” but several.
The keystone to realizing that goal is the 25-mile University Line, a $1.5 billion bus rapid transit proposal that will connect neighborhoods from Westchase to the Tidwell Transit Center. Not every transit investment makes sense, but this one does for three reasons: It connects several of Houston’s biggest downtowns. It connects Metro’s existing investments, making the system work better as a whole.
Some of these concerns are reasonable. Building out public transit from scratch is often a messy ordeal. Unlike robust mass transit systems such as those in New York and Chicago, which have existed for more than a century, Metro is still in its relative infancy. Its first light rail project, the Red Line, is barely old enough to vote. And transit officials have mismanaged expectations for attracting riders.