EDIT: I have updated the map based on additional information with a simpler alignment from Magnolia up 7th Avenue to Terrell to link Plaza Medical, Cook Children’s, and Harris Methodist.
Based on further bits of information I’ve gathered from multiple places, I’ve refined the map of the streetcar starter system a bit further. For the usual disclaimers: this map is not official, and is based on the routes solidly identified thus far along with my own speculation about the more vaguely-defined portions of the system. It is subject to change based on engineering and other factors and should not be taken as gospel.
So, here’s what’s changed:
The Cultural District route looks like it won’t be following the big loop down to Harley Avenue as was depicted in the initial whitepaper. Instead, the line runs down 7th to Montgomery, south on Montgomery to Lancaster, east on Lancaster to Currie, north on Currie to 7th, then back to downtown (and the actual direction of travel isn’t set in stone – it could very well go the other way ’round, but it looks like this is the path of the tracks that will be recommended).
The Near Southside route is pretty unchanged – South Main and Magnolia are still the prime corridors. I changed to a simpler route on the 7th Avenue to Plaza/Cook Children’s/Harris Methodist portion of the route. Previously, the map showed a loop around the block bounded by 7th Avenue, Terrell, 6th Avenue, and Humbolt, but I’ve refined this to a simpler 7th Avenue to Terrell to 6th Avenue back to Magnolia loop.
The Downtown “core” has been left fairly vague by the committee pending engineering reports – it’s only been described as using Lancaster on the south boundary, Commerce or Calhoun on the east boundary, Belknap, Weatherford, 1st, or 2nd on the north boundary, and Throckmorton or Houston on the west boundary. Based on that, I’ve drawn a pretty simple core loop of Lancaster, Commerce, 1st, and Houston, with a brief jog over to Jones on 9th to reach the ITC. This is just speculation on my part based on the boundaries laid out and the fact that I figure the line will physically go to the ITC. It is entirely possible that I’m way off on the downtown routing compared to what will actually get built, but this image works for discussion purposes.
Something new I’ve heard from a few people is that a Samuels Avenue link will be part of the downtown core. This is something totally new to me, and I have no idea how it might be accomplished. In this map, I’ve drawn it as a line down 1st to Pecan, up to Bluff, and over to Samuels and back. I base that solely on my knowledge of downtown streets and the fact that there has been discussion of installing traffic signals at the intersections along Pecan at Belknap and, I believe, Weatherford. This alignment also links the Pecan Place developments. This part of the route is pure speculation on my part and may not bear any resemblance to the finished product.
The reasons for wanting a connection to Samuels are at least twofold. One, the area is booming in its own right thanks to the Trinity Bluff developments, and these developments are exactly the sort that would be well served with streetcar service. Two, there is apparently still a discussion as to the nature of a later extension of the streetcar system to the Stockyards. The initial whitepaper showed the line going up North Main from downtown, but there is talk of using Samuels to get to the Stockyards instead. Bear in mind that any future extension to the Stockyards is definitely a “future business” sort of thing and won’t be happening any time soon, so there will be plenty of talk about that route later.
Lastly, there is the short line running to the Evans & Rosedale Village area along East Rosedale. This is being presented as part of the starter system. There is a mixed-use development in the planning at Evans & Rosedale, which is part of the reason for this extension (along with the fact that Evans & Rosedale is a designated Urban Village site). It’s also important to show that the streetcar is intended to serve the often-neglected east side, and this short line will be the basis for a later expansion down East Rosedale to Texas Wesleyan University.
A note on the map: where exact routing is not yet specified, I tried to keep the lines no more than two blocks apart, based on the design of the Portland Streetcar which similarly never has two directions more than two blocks apart. In addition, I make no proclamations yet about how much single vs. double tracking will be used. These questions will be determined in the design and engineering phase of the project.
So there you have it. There will be three public meetings on the streetcar routes this month, on the 17th, 18th, and 19th. I will have the exact locations and times in a later post. After that, I believe the proposal goes before the City Council for a vote in December. This map, while it may not be 100% accurate to the system that will get built, should give you a pretty good idea of what to expect.
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