‘It’s a down month’: METRORail Red Line delays persist after weeks

Weeks after Houston’s METRORail Red Line riders began reporting major delays, METRO says it’s starting to see early improvements, but says it will take more time to restore reliable travel times.

During Thursday’s METRO Committee Meeting, Vice President of Service Russell Frank acknowledged the slowdown and its impact on ridership, calling it “a down month” for the Red Line.

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Another METRO official told board members that staff are actively monitoring the situation and making adjustments.

“Our staff is very much engaged and been working on solutions.” the official said. “We made some more timing changes and put some timing back like they were before... We’re beginning to see some benefits, but it’s an iterative process. To our customers, please be patient.”

METRO says it continues to work with the City of Houston to fine-tune signal timing in downtown and midtown, where the adjustments first implemented around September 20 have affected Red Line operations. The agency said the goal was to improve overall transit flow, including bus, curb2curb, and METROLift services.

Several public speakers voiced concerns during Thursday’s meeting, saying the signal changes have had a disproportionate impact on rail riders.

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Peter Eccles, Director of Policy and Planning for LINK Houston, praised METRO for restoring preemption at some intersections but said the work isn’t finished.

“We appreciate that signal preemption has now been restored to 16 of 26 intersections in downtown and midtown,” Eccles said. “This is a great first step... but without full preemption, Red Line service will continue to run with delays, continue to undercapacity, and continue to lose ridership.”

LINK Houston advocates for a robust and equitable transportation network to ensure all residents can reach opportunity. Eccles said the group’s petition to restore full preemption has already gathered more than 600 signatures.

Other riders echoed similar frustrations.

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“There’s always a delay of 10 to 20 minutes,” said Michelle Blackwell, who rides from the Near Northside. “Even today, coming here, there was a 10-minute delay.”

METRO said it continues to coordinate with city traffic engineers and expects to provide a fuller update at next month’s board meeting.