Station Design & Road Improvements The DEIS

According to the DEIS, the concourses will consist of public areas, restaurants, bars, seating areas, fast foods, concessions and newsstands, along with pedestrian connections to an adjacent parking facility.

Improvements also are planned for Post Oak Road at Hempstead Road, Post Oak Road at Old Katy Road and West 18th Street at Hempstead Road. These will be designed in part to alleviate current congestion and improve traffic flow.

The station selection marks the latest train-related announcement for Texas Central and Houston, whose official seal boasts a train engine as a symbol of progress. Houston once so dominated Texas rails that it was known as the place “where 17 railroads meet the sea.”

In August, the two announced an economic development and jobs-creating plan related to the Texas Bullet Train. Under that agreement, Texas Central is committed to recruiting construction contractors, subcontractors and employees from the local job market for the construction of the project and its maintenance and operation.

In addition, the city and Texas Central will participate in the study and design of “efficient multi-modal connections” between the Houston station and the city’s major activity centers.

The joint agreement says the project will have a “substantial and long-lasting positive impact on the city’s economy, serve as a catalyst for future growth, create jobs and infuse tax revenue into the state and the local communities.”

It says the train will help cut traffic congestion and related air emissions, providing “sound, fast and comfortable transportation alternatives,” using “world-class, proven technology.”

The bullet train is expected to remove 14,630 cars daily from Interstate 45, which will save 81.5 million gallons of gas a year. Also, the train will be using the safest technology in the world, while I-45 is the second deadliest highway in America.