Category Archives: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Tesla autopilot crash mystery solved

Posted on February 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It wasn’t on autopilot after all. Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board apparently have solved the mystery of why no one was found behind the steering wheel of a Tesla that crashed near The Woodlands two years ago, killing … Continue reading →

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More on the state of B-Cycle

Posted on February 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I think they will come out of this in better shape, but change is always hard. In a sense, Maya Ford is just trying to get Houston Bike Share back in gear in the hope that it has a long … Continue reading →

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Metro CEO Lambert to retire

Posted on February 5, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I wish him well. After 44 years, Tom Lambert is hopping off the Metro bus. Lambert, president and CEO of Metropolitan Transit Authority, is retiring at the end of the year after leading Texas’ largest transit system for 11 years. … Continue reading →

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A brief 11th Street update

Posted on January 31, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

From the latest Woodland Heights Civic Association newsletter: 11th Street Safety Improvements: Project Update The WHCA board hosted City officials (David Fields, Lauren Grove, and Colin Lupold) at the January 10th general meeting. We had around 50 or so on … Continue reading →

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The Pierce Skypark and the Midtown McDonald’s

Posted on January 29, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Fascinating. The now closed McDonald’s in Midtown isn’t the only parcel at play in the area that could – when combined with a major proposed “sky park’ – help to reshape the southern edge of downtown. The Greyhound bus station next to … Continue reading →

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Metro approves initial takeover of B-Cycle

Posted on January 28, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I’m optimistic about this. The Metro board approved a six-to-nine month transition period where operations now overseen by the nonprofit Houston Bike Share will move into the transit agency. Officials said rolling the bike borrowing system into the transit made … Continue reading →

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Will Metro take over B-Cycle?

Posted on January 22, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I like the idea and hope Metro can really run with it. The Houston area’s biggest bus operator is considering getting in the bike business, infusing up to $500,000 into the city’s network of docked two-wheelers. Under the proposal, scheduled for a vote … Continue reading →

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I-45 construction never stops

Posted on January 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It just keeps moving on. Though attention remains on rebuilding Interstate 45 through northern parts of Houston, state highway officials also are planning for the next round of road work. The Texas Department of Transportation has scheduled two public meetings, … Continue reading →

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So what’s the deal with that I-45 deal?

Posted on January 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Still to be determined. Houston, Harris County and the Texas Department of Transportation have an agreed path forward for rebuilding Interstate 45, and a lot of steps to get there. Details big and small remain works in progress and a … Continue reading →

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Driverless taxi service arrives in Austin

Posted on January 9, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Brace yourselves, Austinites. A rite of passage as an Austinite is feeling bewildered at other drivers’ choices behind the wheel, but that’s starting to change. Cruise, a driverless ridehailing app, has completed its first driverless rides in Austin, marking its official … Continue reading →

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The road construction chaos that we know of for 2023

Posted on January 7, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Forewarned, forearmed, etc. A new year will mean major developments for some of the biggest highway projects in the region, but drivers should not expect them to be finished until 2024. The largest projects by the Texas Department of Transportation … Continue reading →

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Here come some hydrogen-powered trucks

Posted on January 4, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

There’s more than one way to do no-emissions transportation. The first time Rodrigo Peña climbed into the Hyzon truck’s cabin and eased his foot off the break, it wasn’t the awe of being inside the first hydrogen-powered freight truck to … Continue reading →

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The ribbon is finally cut on the White Oak bike trail extension

Posted on December 31, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I’d been waiting for this. Hike and bike trail connectivity has just gotten better in the Houston Heights area now that work on a new connector is complete. The City of Houston held a ribbon cutting [last] Tuesday to celebrate … Continue reading →

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Agreement reached on I-45 expansion plans

Posted on December 20, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I remain skeptical, but we’ll see. The bottleneck of design differences that has divided officials about remaking Interstate 45 north of downtown Houston is easing, officials said Monday, clearing the way for construction on the $10 billion project, perhaps in … Continue reading →

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Driverless taxi update

Posted on December 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Things to watch out for in the nearer-than-you-think future, with Austin first in line. When transit systems experience delays, the reason usually isn’t very interesting: congested streets, medical emergencies, mechanical problems. But the cause of a recent holdup on San … Continue reading →

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HISD to get funding for electric school buses

Posted on December 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Some good news. Houston Independent School District is hopping on the city’s net-zero carbon emissions bus, so to speak, thanks to more than $6.2 million in funding from the Environmental Protection Agency. The funds are part of the EPA’s Clean … Continue reading →

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New rules for hot air balloon operators

Posted on December 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This caught my eye. More than six years after 16 people died in a hot air balloon crash in Central Texas, the Federal Aviation Administration has started enforcing new rules on commercial balloon pilots that were devised because of tragedy. The … Continue reading →

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Electric trucks and the power grid

Posted on November 21, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting. Next month, Tesla Inc. plans to deliver the first of its electric Semi trucks—able to haul a full 40 ton-load some 500 miles on a single charge. These massive batteries-on-wheels may accelerate the transition to electrified transport, but … Continue reading →

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IKEA gets self-driving trucks

Posted on November 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Not for home delivery. Not yet, anyway.

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Shepherd/Durham construction update

Posted on November 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good long story in the Chron. When the workers clear — still months away — Shepherd and Durham, along with some major side streets, will be remade, and in many ways reformed. The streets, dual thoroughfares that funnel traffic between Memorial Drive and … Continue reading →

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White Oak bike trail extension: The final polish

Posted on November 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I haven’t seen a news story or press release to say that the White Oak bike trail extension is now fully open, but what I have seen is bicyclists using the trail. So open it must be. And since the … Continue reading →

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Texas Central insists they’re still alive

Posted on October 30, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It’s something, I guess. A lawyer for nearly 100 property owners who are living with the threat of their land being seized said he will seek legal action against Texas Central, the company that for a decade has promised to … Continue reading →

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If we can’t get high speed rail in Texas…

Posted on October 23, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

… At least we can maybe get some more Amtrak service. San Antonio residents finally may get new rail service connecting them to Dallas, Houston and Austin, according to a Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) filing. In an Oct. 5 … Continue reading →

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Another depressing story about the existential future of Texas Central

Posted on October 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It’s sad, y’all. People in the path of a proposed but floundering high-speed rail line between Houston and Dallas last week filed a letter that in many ways labels Texas Central Railroad the little engine that will never be. They … Continue reading →

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White Oak bike trail extension: I think we’re done now?

Posted on October 2, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

When we last looked about a month ago, it was clear that the construction on the White Oak Bike Trail extension was almost done, as there was just a small amount of concrete to be poured to connect the trail … Continue reading →

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Metro looks beyond parking lots for its park and rides

Posted on October 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I like the idea. It will need some careful thought and planning, but the idea seems to be on the right track to me. The Metropolitan Transit Authority spent decades developing a network of parking lots where drivers could leave … Continue reading →

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Too many bicyclists die on the roads around here

Posted on October 1, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We should be more upset about this. More than 100 bicyclists have died on Harris County roads over the past five years, according to data from the Texas Department of Transportation. A Chronicle analysis of TxDOT roadway crash data found … Continue reading →

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Is this enough lipstick for the I-45 project?

Posted on September 26, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

You decide. A downtown economic development group hopes proposed “green” and multimodal amenities will make the controversial I-45 expansion plan more palatable for the project’s critics. The multi-billion-dollar plan by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to widen and reroute … Continue reading →

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More on the DeLorean reboot company and its interesting legal history

Posted on September 25, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Another prestige podcast in the making, I suspect. Six months after DeLorean Motors Reimagined, the startup seeking to produce a new incarnation of the 1980s sports car, said it would put is headquarters in Texas, a lawsuit filed against the … Continue reading →

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Nuro keeps on expanding in Houston

Posted on September 18, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Someone must be using these services. I’m not, but someone must be. Houstonians will soon be able to get completely autonomous delivery of their dinners, groceries, and more thanks to a new 10-year partnership. Uber Technologies, Inc. and Nuro have … Continue reading →

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Unifying the opposition to massive urban highway projects

Posted on September 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good idea, ought to have some effect, but changing the overall culture and philosophy about transportation in Texas is a very big lift. Opponents of some of Texas’ largest transportation projects are unifying their messaging, pushing state highway officials to … Continue reading →

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The slow but steady march of Houston’s non-car transportation infrastructure

Posted on September 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good story. When he arrived in Houston two years ago, what David Fields saw belied what he had heard. The nation’s fourth-largest city has long been known as car-centric and geared toward commuting, with a web of wide freeways that … Continue reading →

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West 11th construction is about to start

Posted on September 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Get ready, here it comes. City staffers are finalizing a plan to add protected bike lanes along 11th Street in the Heights and reduce the number of driving lanes, despite pushback from some residents in the area. Crews will begin … Continue reading →

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Still wondering about the existential future of Texas Central

Posted on September 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I really hoped this would be a thing. If it isn’t, it’s a great wasted opportunity. Ten years ago, a company calling itself Texas Central High-Speed Railway announced plans for a trailblazing bullet train that would whisk passengers between Dallas … Continue reading →

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