Custom «Transportation in Houston» Essay Paper Sample

There are many modes of transport used in Houston. One can be able to travel via busses, hired cars, air, trains, personal cars, cabs and taxis among others. There are highways, railways, airports through private and public, etc. Houston is served by freeways and expressways. It is also served by two airports known as the George Bush Intercontinental and the Hobby airport. The George Bush Intercontinental is placed position seven as being the busiest in the United States. It is also one of the swiftest growing airports in The United States.

Like any other parts of the world, there are also pedestrians and cyclists. The United States is categorised as a developed country and so its transport system is quite developed. Most of Houston's citizens as well as other states use personal cars for transportation. This is very convenient for the working schedule in Texas is twenty four hours round the clock.

Cycling and walking is not highly used like in most of the developing countries. School children usually go to school by the designated school buses just like in other states. Others are just dropped in school by their parents as they go to work or do other errands. Unfortunately, the number of cyclists being run down by drivers is steadily increasing. The pedestrians are also not very safe as they are also being knocked down through an accident caused by carelessness or sheer bad luck.

The use of trains has also greatly improved transportation in Houston. Trains reduce the normal traffic congestion found on the roads. Trains especially electric ones are very swift. They are faster than vehicles and hence provide a quick mode of transport from one town to another.

Houston is fast growing town in Texas City and so its transport systems are growing fast as well. As we can see, one is spoilt for choice on what to travel with depending on the distance, urgency, finances and the number of people travelling.

Houston has very many buses that are used as a means of transport in Houston. These buses are used to carry the different kinds of people that are moving from one point to another in Houston. Buses carry many people at ones. For this case, they help reduce the great congestion of traffic on the roads. One bus can save the presence of approximately ten cars on the road.

Another advantage about buses is that they are much cheaper than using a personal car or a taxi. One needs only to worry about the bus fare and not about the gas money or the maintenance money of the car. We also have buses that carry school children. These buses are owned by the government and they are actually free and they transport the children in the morning and in the afternoon after school time. These are very helpful especially to the parents who do not have much time to drop their children in school.

They also offer a good social place for children to interact with other children so that they break the monotony of being taken to school by their parent's everyday. The school buses may also act as a rescue plan when a parent lacks money for gas or to pay a taxi and the children have to go to school. The children are dropped right in school which is why they are also secure.

Modes of transport go everywhere

When one thinks of transportation in Houston, the word is diverse and travelling come in mind. There is no place that you cannot go when you are in Houston. This is because there are means of transport that can get one anywhere as long as they wish to and they have the transport money. A place that cannot be reached on foot or by walking, it can always be reached by bus. If it is impossible by bus, it can be reached by a taxi, if not it can always be reached by a personal vehicle, if that is difficult, it can be reached by a train, if it also becomes hard we can always use an aeroplane and so on (Urbanik & Roark 98).

All these, indicates that, one is able to travel to any part of the world from Houston. In the same way one can be able to travel from any part of the world to Houston as long as that part of the world has the required means of transport. These have made the transportation in Houston become very easy and efficient.

All time round transportation

There is no time of the day or night that you can lack any means of transport to use. This is because there is always one type of means or even more to serve the citizens. During the day, one can always use buses, taxis, trains, motorcycles, bicycles, aeroplanes etc. This is because human beings basically work during the day.

Late in the night, one can always use their own personal cars, taxis or even aeroplanes if they are going for long distances e.g. travelling to another state. Buses and trains are sometime hard to come by during the night although there are some that are designated to travel to certain places during the night. There is nothing as bad as being stranded somewhere due to lack of means of transport. The presence of transport whether day or during the night has made working quite efficient. It has also made travelling easier and one can always travel during the night and work during the day.

Job opportunities

The transport industry has created many job opportunities in Houston. There are drivers, pilots, air hosts and hostesses, air traffic controllers, traffic controllers, transport managers, etc. It has also created a lot of businesses opportunities to many entrepreneurs such the making of private airports, e.g. West Houston airport, Houston South west airport etc. Individuals have started taxi businesses, bought aeroplanes for commercial use just to mention but a few. There is also the creation of job opportunities to those who construct the roads for there is constant construction of roads due to the growing number of motorists. This has greatly reduced crime in Houston as it provides a means of earning a living from the lowest in the socio- economic class to the highest who can easily buy an aeroplane (Weiskopf 78).

Inadequate routes

Due to the many vehicles, motorcycles and bicycles on the road, the roads and provided routes have become inadequate. The population is growing and so are the means of transport on the roads. Sometimes there is a lot of traffic congestion on the roads which sometimes becomes very annoying and irritating especially if one is in a hurry to reach somewhere.

Sometimes there is a mix up between the cyclists and the drivers as they are all in a hurry to get to their destinations. Due to these congestions and hurrying, the traffic sometimes cumbersome to control especially if there is any place that it is controlled manually.

Due to the lack of many ways for the motorists, cyclists and the pedestrians, there is an increment in the number of cyclists and pedestrian accidents. Drivers are running over pedestrians and cyclists which is a big loss.

One of the major solutions is to as many routes as possible. These will include routes that are used by cyclists and pedestrians in order to minimize these accidents whether fatal or simply out of carelessness. The construction of more routes will also reduce the amount of traffic congestion in the city. Interstate 45 South has always been under construction so that it can continue accommodating the growing number of vehicles. Some money is and should always be allocated by the Texas governing office to construct and expand the already existing roads in order to accommodate the growing traffic e.g. the Gulf Freeway. Flyovers and multiple lanes would also play a great role in controlling the traffic in Houston.

There should also be motorists training and public education whether it is through the media or other modes of communication. These will bring awareness on how to use the routes designated for cyclists and pedestrians or how to share the roads in case there is such a coincidence. This may play a great role in minimizing the number of accidents happening.

Traffic policemen should also play their role in stopping the cars that seem to be over speeding, or those drivers who do not have valid driving licences.

The people might be encouraged to use buses as a means of transport whenever possible so that there can be minimal personal vehicles on the roads therefore reducing the amount of traffic congestion. For example, students (high school seniors) can use a bus when going for a trip or camping somewhere, instead of using personal vehicles.

Transport in Houston is as good as any other in the other cities of the world. The people living there might be challenged or at a disadvantage in one way or another but Houston is a city that is really growing fast in all aspects.