10-Day Countdown to New Bus Network One Year Anniversary

Transit Agencies Trek to Houston for New Bus Network Lessons

#6

METRO's bold switch to the New Bus Network garnered international and national attention from the mass transit community.  Houston had a problem. The city's rapid population growth started to extend across the region and METRO local bus ridership numbers were declining.

Faced with these challenges, METRO took the unconventional approach of rethinking its transportation network starting with a blank slate.  The success of the forward thinking transformation has drawn attention from cities across the nation and even on the other side of the world like Auckland, New Zealand.

More than sixteen mass transit organizations from across the United States have touched base with METRO'S New Bus Network architects.  Four of those agencies traveled to Houston to visit and tour multiple departments for further understanding.

Click here to see how Maryland Transit Administrators learned about METRO's New Bus Network.

"All four of these agencies wanted to understand our new system better and have a more in-depth discussion of the policies, procedures, and strategies used to plan and implement our network overhaul," said Kurt Luhrsen, vice president of planning.  "What's capturing other agencies attention is if a city like Houston, where the car is king, can make an extensive transit redesign efficient and increase ridership, many other cities can make an overhaul work too."