What alternatives could we consider?

I concur with some previous responses regarding the addition of light rail along Washington. Most likely, it would have to be an extension of either the Green or Purple METRORail lines. Of course, the ideal outcomes regarding the plans depends on any changes in land use within the city of Houston: this includes the needs regarding the elimination of parking minimums, the elimination of setback minimums, the elimination of lot size minimums, and other unnecessary rules that reduce efficiency, safety, and overall quality of life within the city.

I really like the idea of light rail Washington because it will hopefully make the street more like a classic Main Street where people can visit and shop and spend time and walk along. Most traffic should really be taking Memorial Drive or I-10 so Washington makes sense as a central spine of the neighborhood where shops and stuff can be located.

On Saturday, March 22, late morning, I drove eastward on Washington from Shepherd to Heights. The traffic was heavy. It was apparent that at least two lanes in each direction are needed for efficient traffic flow.

The Federal Highway Administration has issued guidelines for considerations of "Road Diets". One key metric in their guidelines is the "Vehicles per Hour per Direction" (VPHPD). Their guidelines specify that if traffic exceeds 750 then the removal of car lanes for bike lanes may not be feasible. At the 2nd public engagement session, the question was asked on the current VPHPD for Washington Ave. The HZ representative indicated that there are parts of WA currently at 777 VPHPD and parts of WA are currently over 1100 VPHPD. If 2 lanes each way are removed, then this metric would double to over 1500-2200 VPHPD putting WA way over capacity. The representative then went on to say that traffic would have to be diverted to other streets. As we all well know, there are no other suitable east-west streets near WA that can handle this kind of traffic. The streets south of WA are typically very narrow and can handle 1 car at a time when cars are parked along these streets. Center Street north of WA is hardly suitable either especially if bike lanes are added there..

Reducing traffic flow hurts Inner Loop residents who use the local streets to get to work, shopping, medical appointments, daily living. Washington Ave is a major thoroughfare for just that reason, as well as use by the public at large whether they live inside the Loop or out. The goal appears to be to drive traffic onto highways and off the streets inside the Loop. Further, when traffic can't flow, it spreads out to the residential areas where speeding and traffic volume can have much worse consequences. If you turn Washington Ave into a local street, you will choke off legitimate users and they will turn to alternatives you may not want.