In your company, are you responsible for booking venues, facilities, restaurants and organizing transportation for meetings and events?
| Accessing Houston |
The buses feature a sleek modern design, low-floor access, perimeter seating, air conditioning and capacity for 28, and each bus is equipped with a bike rack as well. In addition, the clean-energy buses have lower maintenance costs and run on compressed natural gas that makes Greenlink a more efficient transportation option with fewer emissions and less waste compared to traditional buses.
Zipcar
For those who want the freedom of driving but want to save money and help the environment, Zipcar is the world’s leading car-sharing network of alternative transportation. Right now in Houston, Zipcar is just entering the scene in a partnership with the city to launch a municipal fleet-sharing program that will outfit 50 of its vehicles—including 25 plug-in electric and hybrid vehicles—with Zipcar’s car-sharing technology. Currently Zipcars are available 24/7 to students and faculty on the campus of Rice University near Downtown Houston.
The hope is that these initiatives will create the infrastructure to soon support Zipcar for the general public and especially business travelers. With less cost, hassle and waste, plus low weekday driving rates for business members and gas and insurance expenses included, it’s simply good for business.
If you or your group is visiting or staying downtown, leave the cars parked and venture forth with one of Houston’s new green transportation initiatives.
developments on the horizon
Houston always is striving to improve its transportation infrastructure both on the ground and in the air. Take a look at some new projects that will be realized in the next few years.
METRORail
Currently, locals and visitors traveling between downtown, Midtown, the Museum District and the Texas Medical Center have the option of using the 7.5-mile north/south METRORail light rail train, a fast and convenient way to get where you’re going while leaving the car behind. In an effort to expand its utility for even more citizens and visitors, and with the support of a $188-million allocation of additional construction funding, Houston METRO is working on line expansions all over the city. The in-progress expansions, expected for completion in 2014, will make public transportation even more convenient and readily available while also cutting down on automobile emissions.
The North (Red) Line, currently running from just south of Reliant Park to the University of Houston-Downtown, is getting a 5.3-mile, eight-station extension that continues north past its current terminus to Interstate 45 and ending at Northline Commons. A new East End (Green) Line will extend 3.3 miles from the Smith Street Station in the culturally rich Theater District to the Magnolia Transit Center in east Houston. The new Southeast (Purple) Line will run 6.6 miles southeast from downtown Houston to a terminal at Palm Center past MacGregor Park near the 610 Loop. This project also includes 10 new stations and a new vehicle storage and wash facility. When all are done, in-station transfers will be available in the downtown area between the existing North (Red) Line and the new East End (Green) and Southeast (Purple) Lines.
Future as-of-yet-unfunded plans also include an east/west University (Blue) Line that will extend 11.3 miles from the Hillcroft Transit Center in southwest Houston to the Eastwood Transit Center near the University of Houston Central Campus. It will cross town through the shopping and dining areas inside the 610 Loop north of U.S. 59 and the artful Warehouse District and make a stop at Texas State University. METRO also wants to extend service to the Uptown/Galleria area with the Uptown (Beige) Line, which would start at the Bellaire/Rice station shared with the University (Blue) Line and extend north to the proposed Northwest Transit Center near Memorial Park.
Hobby Airport International Terminal
The Houston City Council recently approved a deal to have Southwest Airlines build a $100-million expansion of the William H. Hobby Airport that will open it to international flights to Mexico and the Caribbean as of 2015. The expansion not only will increase the international accessibility of Houston, it has the potential to create 18,000 jobs and inject $1.6 billion a year into the local economy. Moreover, the hope is that Southwest’s lower fares will create competition with the current United Airlines monopoly on Latin American routes out of Bush Intercontinental Airport to get more people flying to and from these destinations. Among the many new jobs created, some will be customs officers to staff a new Federal Inspection Services facility at the airport.
Zipcar
For those who want the freedom of driving but want to save money and help the environment, Zipcar is the world’s leading car-sharing network of alternative transportation. Right now in Houston, Zipcar is just entering the scene in a partnership with the city to launch a municipal fleet-sharing program that will outfit 50 of its vehicles—including 25 plug-in electric and hybrid vehicles—with Zipcar’s car-sharing technology. Currently Zipcars are available 24/7 to students and faculty on the campus of Rice University near Downtown Houston.
The hope is that these initiatives will create the infrastructure to soon support Zipcar for the general public and especially business travelers. With less cost, hassle and waste, plus low weekday driving rates for business members and gas and insurance expenses included, it’s simply good for business.
If you or your group is visiting or staying downtown, leave the cars parked and venture forth with one of Houston’s new green transportation initiatives.
developments on the horizon
Houston always is striving to improve its transportation infrastructure both on the ground and in the air. Take a look at some new projects that will be realized in the next few years.
METRORail
Currently, locals and visitors traveling between downtown, Midtown, the Museum District and the Texas Medical Center have the option of using the 7.5-mile north/south METRORail light rail train, a fast and convenient way to get where you’re going while leaving the car behind. In an effort to expand its utility for even more citizens and visitors, and with the support of a $188-million allocation of additional construction funding, Houston METRO is working on line expansions all over the city. The in-progress expansions, expected for completion in 2014, will make public transportation even more convenient and readily available while also cutting down on automobile emissions.
The North (Red) Line, currently running from just south of Reliant Park to the University of Houston-Downtown, is getting a 5.3-mile, eight-station extension that continues north past its current terminus to Interstate 45 and ending at Northline Commons. A new East End (Green) Line will extend 3.3 miles from the Smith Street Station in the culturally rich Theater District to the Magnolia Transit Center in east Houston. The new Southeast (Purple) Line will run 6.6 miles southeast from downtown Houston to a terminal at Palm Center past MacGregor Park near the 610 Loop. This project also includes 10 new stations and a new vehicle storage and wash facility. When all are done, in-station transfers will be available in the downtown area between the existing North (Red) Line and the new East End (Green) and Southeast (Purple) Lines.
Future as-of-yet-unfunded plans also include an east/west University (Blue) Line that will extend 11.3 miles from the Hillcroft Transit Center in southwest Houston to the Eastwood Transit Center near the University of Houston Central Campus. It will cross town through the shopping and dining areas inside the 610 Loop north of U.S. 59 and the artful Warehouse District and make a stop at Texas State University. METRO also wants to extend service to the Uptown/Galleria area with the Uptown (Beige) Line, which would start at the Bellaire/Rice station shared with the University (Blue) Line and extend north to the proposed Northwest Transit Center near Memorial Park.
Hobby Airport International Terminal
The Houston City Council recently approved a deal to have Southwest Airlines build a $100-million expansion of the William H. Hobby Airport that will open it to international flights to Mexico and the Caribbean as of 2015. The expansion not only will increase the international accessibility of Houston, it has the potential to create 18,000 jobs and inject $1.6 billion a year into the local economy. Moreover, the hope is that Southwest’s lower fares will create competition with the current United Airlines monopoly on Latin American routes out of Bush Intercontinental Airport to get more people flying to and from these destinations. Among the many new jobs created, some will be customs officers to staff a new Federal Inspection Services facility at the airport.
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If accepted, your submission will be edited for length and clarity. There is no monetary payment if your item is used; instead, you can publicize yourself through a five-line biography with your contact information that will appear at the end of the article.
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editorial@MeetingPlannerResources.org. We will contact you if your submission is chosen.