METRO Houston announced their expansion of the 500 IAH Downtown Direct line to transport passengers between George Bush Intercontinental Airport to Downtown Houston on April 13.
The IAH Downtown Direct line opened for passengers seeking transportation to Downtown Houston without any stops, unlike the 102 Bush IAH Express line. Contrary to what its name suggests, bus route 102 makes frequent stops from Bush Intercontinental Airport through Greenspoint and the Aldine Bender area on I-45 South before arriving downtown.
Local bus route 102 also encounters prolonged traffic through Beltway 8 from the airport due to construction, adding risk to passengers late for their flight. With the new bus route 500 line, passengers will ride through Highway 69 onto the express lane and stop at the George R. Brown Convention Center with no interruption.
This decision was part of a multimillion-dollar plan to prioritize security, cleanliness and accessibility to all passengers and conductors. The METRONow project plans to remove and upgrade security cameras and systems, build new accessible ramps by bus stops and stations to increase mobility for passengers with disabilities, and perform daily cleaning and sanitizing of buses, trains, bus stops and stations.
“If we are not safe, nothing else matters,” said Mayor John Whitmire. “We are committed to the coordination of the METRO Police Department and the Houston Police Department to ensure both public transit and the entire city will be safer.”
The bus route 500 line runs daily every 30 minutes between 5:35 a.m. to 8:08 p.m. The fare is priced at $4.50 each way and $2.25 for discounted riders. Passengers can access the bus schedule, bus stop locations, and approximate arrival times at rideMETRO.org.
