Posted on 01/31/2004 3:50:04 AM PST by Flyer
Crowds Force METRORail To Cut Service
2 Park & Rides Closed
HOUSTON -- For the second night in a row, large crowds at METRORail stations forced officials to shut down some of the light-rail route and implement their emergency plan.
Service for the new transit system was stopped at Main and Walker Thursday and Friday night when METRO police became concerned that crowded streets could lead to trouble.
"Once it got to a point that we had too many pedestrians to operate safely, we discontinued rail through the downtown area," said Chief Tom Lambert, with METRO Police.
Since METRO expected large crowds through the weekend, it decided to close two of the Park & Ride locations.
The Park & Rides at the West Loop, 4675 South Braeswood, and Fuqua, 11755 Sabo Road, are not open to the public.
METRO officers can make more changes if needed.
"We've asked them to exercise their discretion. If they see circumstances beginning to arise to let supervisors know. And that's exactly what happened last night. Some folks, I think playfully, (tried) to touch out to the train. When you start doing that, we get a little nervous about that from a safety standpoint. That was brought to our attention by the officers, and so we just made a decision that we just discontinue operations. We'll do the same thing tonight," Lambert said.
METRO said the service would end Saturday and Sunday at 8 p.m.
Many of the downtown revelers used METRORail to get to the street parties.
"By the time we got halfway here, you couldn't get on the train. It was packed -- you know, it was full. People were actually having to wait for the next train," said Steven Hypes, who road light-rail train.
"We live out in Sugar Land and so the 90 and Fannin Park & Ride was great," said Bonnie Hypes, who also road METRORail.
Riders were not surprised that the trains did not go further into downtown.
"There was like two or three times the train had to slow down in town here because people walked across, so yeah, that makes sense. Somebody will stumble across it," Steven Hypes said.
The Texas Medical Center is opening one of its parking lots near Greenbriar, Old Spanish Trail and Braeswood to help alleviate downtown congestion.
Approximately 3,500 vehicles will be able to park there. Shuttles will take drivers and passengers into downtown.
Flocks Of Fans Make Their Way To Houston
Fans are starting to take the Bayou City by storm, arriving at area airports to cheer their favorite team on.
Thousands of passengers got a warm and cheerful welcome as they arrived in Houston Friday at Bush Intercontinental and Hobby airports for a weekend of partying and football.
"Flight was just full. There weren't a lot of seats on the plane, so I'm glad I got my tickets early," out-of-towner Russell Ebelherr said.
Houston Airport System spokesman Ernie DeSoto compared this weekend to a holiday, where passengers come in sporadically.
"Today, we are seeing a lot more people coming in. We are seeing a number of people who have gotten the three (or four) days off and are coming today," Houston Airport System spokesman Ernie DeSoto said.
However, after the game is over with, DeSoto said everyone flocks to the airports at once.
"People start showing up after the game and sleeping on the floor. They just want to get to the airport, crash from partying throughout the whole game, and catch their flight in the morning," DeSoto said.
Extra police and undercover officers have been added to the airport systems patrol for Super Bowl weekend. Officials are warning passengers that security will be tight.
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