Suburban Warrior Loves His Bus Buddies

2010-03-10T21:46:00Z

For 14 years, Ian Yanagisawa has been riding a METRO Park & Ride bus - and for about the last eight years, he's been commuting downtown on the 274 Westchase/Gessner.

That's logging a lot of miles - enough for the environmental engineer at El Paso Energy Services to become part of a bus community.

In fact, Yanagisawa loves riding the bus so much, the poet and aspiring composer has written lyrics about his experience.

"There are always people I'm looking for on the bus - my bus buds," said Yanagisawa. "We do our bit to catch up - from weddings to stock tips...to where a good restaurant is they just found. We've gotten to be friends outside of just sitting on the bus."

Yanagisawa says there's another benefit, too, in leaving the driving to someone else.

"Less hassles on the way, you don't have to worry about parking. I can kick back and work on songs, or read a book. I appreciate that time not having the stress of driving through traffic," said Yanagisawa, who's teaching himself to play guitar.

Yanagisawa captured his bus-riding experience in a song - penned on a 5 x 7 notepad while riding METRO:

I'm a suburban warrior

I spend my days downtown

Two hours on that bus each day

Can really wear you down.

It has its compensations though

That makes it all worthwhile

You may be saving money

But the people cause the smiles.

I see them in the morning

I see ‘em going back

My bus buds know just when to talk

And when to cut some slack

My company pays my bus fare

"You'll be greener," so they say

You'll save on gas and parking

With less hassle on the way

All that's true I guess

But when the day is done

I wouldn't ride this bus so much

If the people weren't fun.

Forty feet long

And eight feet wide

The doors hiss open

And I climb inside

The driver smiles and says hello

The seats fill up

And we're good to go.

Margaret has saved a spot

And talks about her kids

Lisa tells me of her dogs

And the silly things they did

Jim worries about the test he took

Wondering if he'll pass

Me? I'm working on a brand new song

While sitting on my....

Everything gets talked about

When you're riding on the bus

You may not agree on them

But no one makes a fuss

Politics to movies

Projects or a trip

Weddings or a restaurant

We pass each other tips.

If I won the lottery

And didn't need to ride

I'd miss those conversations

I'd feel emptier inside

So I'd buy a bus and be the driver

My friends would ride for free

We'd solve the problems of the world

And have you home by three.

- Ian Yanagisawa

American Public Transportation Association (APTA).

The high unemployment rate, coupled with lower gas prices, did tamp down ridership a bit - but public transit remains strong.

Last year, 10.2 billion trips were taken on public transit, a 3.8 percent decrease from the 52-year record set in 2008. Cutbacks from state and local funding also fueled lower ridership.

"Given last year's economic hardship, this small decrease in ridership from a record number of ridership trips in 2008, indicates that support for public transit remains strong," said William Millar, APTA president.

Since 1995, public transit has increased 31 percent, a figure that is more than double the growth rate of the population (15 percent) and exceeds the growth rate for the vehicle miles traveled on our highways (21 percent) for that same period.

And if you are one of those commuters, you can pat yourself on the back for going green. Public transit in the U.S. saves 4.2 billion gallons of gas every year and decreases our carbon emissions by 37 million metric tons every year, says APTA.

Read the full APTA ridership report here.

METRO Q® Fare Card every day know the convenience of tapping to board the bus or train. No more digging for change, or searching for bent paper tickets.

Now, there's another fringe benefit of having a Q.

Dine at Julia's Bistro on Main Street, right on the Red Line and show your Q - you'll get a complimentary dessert. The restaurant features organic and locally-grown foods, along with an award-winning wine list.

The menu changes seasonally, but here are some recent offerings: pollo poblano - flattened chicken *** stuffed with portabella mushrooms and panela cheese wrapped in bacon, served with poblano pepper sauce. Or plaintain crusted snapper - a fresh snapper filet encrusted with plantain chips, topped with a ginger mango butter sauce, served with roasted maduros and green beans.

The midtown bistro was named after the grandmother of owner Carmen Vasquez, with whom Vasquez learned about rustic cuisine in a small kitchen in Mexico.

Ric Ancira, general manager at Julia's, said the rail line was definitely a factor in deciding where to locate the restaurant at 3722 Main St.

"This is a prime location. Fortunately, we're between downtown and the Texas Medical Center, and people like to ride the rail to lunch. We wanted to encourage people to get out, and at the same time, reduce the carbon footprint," Ancira said. "So I thought - well, show us a rail pass, and our part will be to treat you to dessert."

Read real reviews from real people on yelp.com. One diner said Julia's Bistro offered the best cappuccino he's tasted.

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, we will have an anti-terrorist force out on the platform, looking for any suspicious activity.

A joint operation with a federal Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) team, METRO's anti-terrorist officers and Special Operations Response Team (SORT) officers will be working with federal air marshals and police dogs trained to detect bombs.

VIPR is a part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Transportation Security Administration and enhances local transit agencies' resources when conducting a highly visible surge during special events. More than 50 mass transit deployments have occurred since the program started in December 2005, according to TSA's Web site.

Look for our own award-wining K-9 officer Shadow and his handler Officer Chris Oberland.

"This is an opportunity for us to show a presence where there is a high volume of people," said Lt. Vera Bumpers, who leads MPD's Homeland Security division. "What we're doing is making sure we stay diligent in protecting our patrons and employees along the rail line."

The team will be looking for any suspicious criminal activity, suspicious people or suspicious packages, said Bumpers, adding that METRO has not received any credible threats.

The anti-terrorist officers have received behavior recognition training that allows them to better detect not only activity associated with international terrorism but domestic criminal activity that could have terrorist overtones.

the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).

That figure is based on the March 3 national average gas price and the national unreserved monthly parking rate. The average cost per gallon of gas on March 3 was $2.703 - 77 cents more than than the price per gallon a year ago same time.

That means you can save $715 more this year than last year if your ride public transportation.

On average, transit riders can save $768 every month. Imagine what you could do with that extra money. Plus, there are other benefits to riding the bus: You can sleep, text without distraction, read a book.

"Taking public transportation provides a safe and affordable way or individuals and families to cut costs," said APTA in a statement. "In addition, taking local public transit offers a travel option that has an immediate positive impact in reducing an individual's overall carbon footprint while helping reduce America's dependence on foreign oil."

Here's how the top 10 cities with the highest transit ridership rank in order of their annual transit savings:

1. New York $13,740

2. Boston $12,333

3. San Francisco $12,134

4. Chicago $11,298

5. Seattle $11,197

6. Philadelphia $11,095

7. Honolulu $10,689

8. Los Angeles $10,023

9. San Diego $ 9,859

10. Mineapolis $ 9,856

Obama administration earmarking $8 billion in stimulus funds toward high-speed rail in California, Florida and Illinois.

In fact, nine out of 10 Americans say high-speed rail would be a long-distance option, according to a survey by HTNB Corp., an engineering and architectural firm.

But if any transit agency wants to buy passenger rail cars, it would have to look overseas. Most passenger rail equipment is manufactured overseas.

Here at METRO, we are buying new trains from CAF in Spain because there is no American manufacturer of light-rail trains.

Now two American companies are forming a joint venture to build rail cars in the United States. US Railcar LLC of Ohio and American Railcar Industries Inc. of Missouri said they will build and sell "self-propelled and unpowered passenger rail cars in both single and bi-level configurations," according to the US Railcar's press release.

Both companies had built freight rail exclusively. The new venture will be called US Railcar Co.

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, you can avoid traffic jams by riding METRO.

Drive to the West Loop Park & Ride located at 4675 S. Braeswood (at South Loop). Parking is free. Then hop on METRO bus 261 Extended West Loop Park & Ride, which will take you directly to the rodeo at Reliant Park.

Tickets are $4 roundtrip. Children ages 2 and under ride free.

Extended service hours are:

Monday to Friday: 5 p.m. to 1 a.m.

Saturday & Sunday: 11 a.m. to 1 a.m.

This extended service will run through Sunday, March 21.

You can also ride the Red Line on Main Street. Although tickets will be for sale on the platform at Fannin South Station, you can avoid the crowds by pre-buying your train tickets to the rodeo at our RideStore at 1900 Main.

We're pre-selling tickets until this Friday. A window dedicated exclusively to selling rail rodeo tickets will keep you from a long wait.

The RideStore is open Monday to Friday, 8 to 5 p.m.

Belgian Malinois, focused on her job and placed second in the National Narcotic Detector Dog Association's fifth annual competition recently.

Roxy and DeMartin are part of the MPD Canine Program. The eight dogs and their handlers help with narcotics and bomb detection, as well as criminal apprehension.

In the competition, Roxy found two explosive devices. The dog that finds the most items without a false find wins. She was among 10 explosives dogs and 16 patrol dog teams competing from Texas and Louisiana.

Roxy and DeMartin also captured Third Place award for the Patrol Dog Competition in which teams are tested for obedience and for apprehending suspects in real-life - and often complex - scenarios.

In the obedience section of the competition, Roxy had to sit motionless while DeMartin walked ahead for a minute. Then the dog had to run with the officer and then slow to a leisurely walk. Finally, Roxy had to lie down and stay until called.

"It's done in a big arena used for horses," said DeMartin of the competition held on the Brazoria County Fair grounds. "There's lots of noise, people in the stands, cats out there, other officers, families. Lots of dogs want to sniff."

The second half of the Patrol Dog Competition was a staged armed robbery, involving three suspects and four vehicles.

"Her only mistake was she grabbed the first guy. She wasn't supposed to do that because he had given up. She was already down there, but the minute I told her to come back, she released the person and came back," recalled DeMartin.

DeMartin said the competition tests an officer's control over her dog, tactical skills and ability to move with the dog. A team for a little more than two years, DeMartin calls her canine partner "easy-going."

"We're a pretty good team, pretty quick. Roxy is extremely laid-back," said DeMartin. "She is very methodical. She's not real high energy. She can be - she gets the job done."

The key to developing a winning formula with her furry friend?

"It takes hundreds of training hours," said DeMartin. "Just building a rapport with the dog - that could take a couple of years to be a good, solid canine team.

"You have to have that balance - discipline and you got to spend time. You have to be affectionate, play with them. The dogs need to have their mind exercised as well as taking walks. Tricks engage them and stimulate their mind."

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo parade or running in the ConocoPhillips Rodeo Run tomorrow, be prepared for some street closures and detours.

The ConocoPhillips Rodeo Run includes a 10K and 5K fun run. Click here to see details of the route.

The parade starts at 9:30 a.m. on Texas at Smith and concludes at 12:30 p.m. on Walker at Bagby. Click here for detailed detours.

The National Road Safety Foundation Inc. (NRSF) and National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS).

Brown's 30-second spot depicts a teen-ager responding to a text message while driving. The distraction causes the driver to crash into an oncoming car.

Then the scene rewinds and starts over - but this time, the driver ignores the beeping alerts of the text message. The driver safely passes the oncoming car she had crashed into in the first scene.

A message crawls over the screen: "There are no redo's in real life."

For Brown's powerful PSA, the high school junior will receive a $1,000 scholarship, along with an expenses-paid trip to New York City. She'll get to produce her spot with award-winning film director Mark Sadan.

"Redo" will air on national television after its debut in May during National Youth Traffic Safety Month.

Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood has been championing no texting while driving and led a summit last fall to find solutions.

"When you get behind the wheel, your focus should be on the road, and safety should be your No. One priority," said LaHood in a statement. "This is especially important for teens, who are less experienced behind the wheel."

Read more about this first annual Drive to Life PSA competition on LaHood's blog, Fast Lane.

Bradlink, LLC, a firm that provides facilities design, engineering and technology support.

Callier has become so successful, teaming up with the big vendors - known as prime contractors - that METRO recently asked her to share her story with other wanna-be METRO contractors at a workshop on what happens after certification.

Callier, a high-energy, upbeat person who says "try" isn't in her vocabulary, said she started pursuing opportunities with METRO in 2004. "Some things we went after initially were not a good fit, or we didn't have the proposal packaged in a manner that showed our strength, or we were not on the right team with a prime," she recalled.

She began embracing the small contracts - those ranging from $5,000 to $7,000, while learning all she could about METRO to see if her firm could fill in any gaps.

"That allowed me to build my portfolio to show METRO what we could do. Baby steps," said Callier. "We started being successful with METRO with small contracts, and with those successes on our resume - even if it were $7,000 - we were a prime contractor with METRO but with a smaller dollar amount. That was ok."

Later, when her company wanted to team up with a bigger firm that was a prime contractor, she could prove she had valuable experience working with METRO. "That's what they needed, too," she said.

Erik Oistad, METRO's vice president and chief information officer, called Callier a true small-business success story.

"Her success is a result of her technical training, organizational ability and desire to follow-through on commitments," said Oistad, recalling Callier's involvement from the beginning with METRO's Q Card program.

As a small businesswoman and president of her firm, Callier said it's up to her to learn the complex procurement process - a challenge for many small businesses.

"If we're submitting a bid and don't understand the procurement process, we could automatically be kicked out," she explained.

Deborah Richard, METRO's vice president of business services, says Callier has taken the time to become familiar with the type of business METRO conducts.

"She has developed and expanded her firm's skills to coincide with METRO's business needs. She has aggressively marketed her firm's services to the prime contractors in those specific areas of work that METRO contracts out," said Richard. "Bradlink consistently satisfies performance standards."

To other small businesses wanting to participate in business opportunities here, Callier offers this advice:

Use METRO's products - ride the buses and trains, use the Park & Ride lot. "Know the product. That's important to provide solutions to METRO," points out Callier.
Follow up on leads. Nurture relationships. Let METRO know where you're being successful. If you're not selected as a vendor, get debriefed and find out why.
Take advantage of the small business development group's monthly workshops at METRO and any program advisors.

Click here to learn how to become certified to do business with METRO. Click here to learn about future workshops. Click here to go to Rail Means Business, where you will learn about opportunities available with the light-rail lines.

75 Energy Corridor Connector, ridership has doubled.

The Connector is a local bus service along Eldridge Parkway, between I-10 and Richmond Avenue, with connections to Addicks Park & Ride. It was launched in partnership with the Energy Corridor District.

METRO recorded 426 boardings the first week of operation Jan 25. By week four, ridership had climbed to 862 boardings.

Rider Pardeep Kumar Lingamallu e-mailed this comment to the Energy Corridor District and gave his permission to post on this blog: "Let me congratulate (you) for introducing the route 75 Energy Corridor. It really is an excellent one to introduce in this route.

"I (have been) using this service from the day it was introduced. Prior to this route, I was commuting to my office, BP from the Amli Apartments at Eldridge @ Briar Forest by car pooling and now all my car pool members have started utilizing this excellent service.

"I have no doubt about this route getting popular in coming days.

"I request you to continue this service on weekends, at least on Saturday so that this offers transfer to Westheimer Road for those residents living on the Eldridge Parkway and Memorial Drive for shopping during weekends."

We hope more riders will join Lingamallu and board the Connector.

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo opens on March 2.

One of the best ways to get there is to ride the rail - and this year, you can buy your rail tickets to the rodeo early.

Almost 2 million people attended the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo last year, and many were buying rail tickets on the platform at the Fannin South station.

But this year, you can avoid the stampede and buy your rail tickets at the RideStore through this Friday. METRORail round-trip tickets will be available for $2.50 each. These are round-trip tickets that can be used for one day only - whatever date you will be attending the rodeo.

The RideStore is located in our administrative building at 1900 Main St. Hours are Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

A window dedicated exclusively to selling rail tickets to the rodeo will be open, ensuring a short line for those who buy early.

You may also buy rail rodeo tickets at CenterPoint Energy this Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. We'll be selling tickets in the lobby at 1111 Louisiana St.

"We're pre-selling rail rodeo tickets to offer rodeo-goers an alternative to standing in line the night of the event," said Nicole Adler, marketing rep for METRO's revenue department. "This way they'll have their rodeo tickets and their rail tickets ready to enjoy the evening. We invite everybody to come and take advantage of our pre-sale."

METRO will continue to sell round-trip rail tickets on the platform every night of the rodeo at the Fannin South station.

American Advertising Federation Houston.

Last Saturday, METRO picked up a silver ADDY in the category of interactive media. It won for the online viral video, Terra Cotta Tourist: The Escape.

The video, about a minute long, featured a warrior who escaped from the Chinese terra cotta warrior exhibit last year at the Houston Museum of Natural Science and enjoyed a break riding a METRO train, visiting local sights. Click here to view it.

The video was shot entirely in-house and competed against Houston ad agencies - large and small - as well, as in-house agencies and design houses.

"This year's judges were particularly hard and judged the entries against the New York, LA and Chicago markets," said Rob Fritsche, who wrote and produced the video. "It gives us validation that while we work for a government agency, we're able to put the same quality of marketing out there as the big companies."

METRO also won a citation for its unusual window clings used to create a futuristic train station at Minute Maid Park's Union Station during the grand opening gala of our North and Southeast lines.

Last summer, METRO celebrated the groundbreaking of those two rail lines with a special ceremony at Union Station. The 108 window panes and 18 door panels were covered with low-tech adhesive on which were printed scenes from a future rail station.

"We coated all the windows and doors on the front-facing walls at Union Station so it was like you were looking out at the new rail platform," said Brian Rogers, METRO's graphic designer who managed the project.

Rogers had to measure the gaps between the windows and doors and sketch a schematic of the interior to indicate how to lay out the material. The gaps ranged from one-half inch to several feet.

"We were there the night they were installing it," recalled Rogers. "I was nervous the whole time. I did not think we would be able to pull it off, but we did. It was beautiful. It was a team effort. Every time we win one of these awards it solidifies us as a department."

http://www.ridemetro.org/News/Broadcast/METROMatters.aspx

If you'd like to watch the show on your big television screen, here are show times on Comcast's Channel 17:

Mon 2/22/10 6:15 p.m.

Sat 2/27/10 1:30 p.m.

Mon 3/1/10 9:30 p.m.

Wed 3/3/10 6:15 p.m.

Sat 3/6/10 4:45 p.m.

Mon 3/8/10 8:00 p.m.

Wed 3/10/10 8:30 p.m.

Fri 3/12/10 6:45 p.m.

Sat 3/13/10 7:00 p.m.

Tue 3/16/10 6:45 p.m.

Thu 3/18/10 6:00 p.m.

Sat 3/20/10 4:45 p.m.

Southside Place or West U, now you've got a chance to try METRO's 402 Quickline Bellaire route.

We just erected a bus station on Bellaire Boulevard at Stella Link. The station has the same modern style as the other eight along the nine-mile express route. It's outfitted with the same amenities, including landscaping, public art, digital next-time bus arrival info and improved lighting.

The Signature Bus service runs from Ranchester to the Texas Medical Center Transit Center, with limited stops.

The specially-marked blue hybrid buses cost the same to ride as other local buses - $1.25. The Quickline service was launched last June.

Read more about the Quickline service here.

Broadway's New Hit: Pedestrians

2010-02-12T20:20:00Z

New York just became a more walkable city.

Yesterday, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said cars will permanently be banned from Broadway.

An experiment last year to close off two areas of Broadway resulted in a pedestrian plaza, complete with lounge chairs for those who wanted to sit and take in the sights and sounds of the city. The photo posted here shows pedestrians enjoying the newly created plaza last May.

Normally jammed with traffic, including taxis whose drivers would constantly honk, the area instead became an oasis for tourists and locals.

Not only was the pedestrian-only space popular, it also resulted in reduced accidents - and increased speed of traffic as congestion improved.

"After an exhaustive review that showed positive results in all aspects, and overwhelming improvement in many areas, we've decided to make this groundbreaking pilot project permanent," said Bloomberg.

Because there were less cars in the area, congestion around Times Square, pictured here, also decreased.

Write On METRO

Suburban Warrior Loves His Bus Buddies

Broadway's New Hit: Pedestrians