From time to time on Houston Matters, we like to check in with News 88.7 beat reporters on developments taking place surrounding the subjects they cover.

Today, we talk with News 88.7 transportation reporter Gail Delaughter about a number of transportation issues, ideas, and projects — including bike trail expansion, the Rice Village parking plan, a high speed rail update, and future plans for METRO. (That last topic will be the subject of a more detailed conversation Tuesday, March 7, 2017 with METRO Chair Carrin Patman). We welcome your questions as well.

Also this hour…

Trains in Houston

While a lot of attention has been paid to a proposed high-speed rail line between Houston and Dallas, and Houstonians in favor of mass transit expansion push for additional light rail in town, trains don’t just haul people to and from portions of Greater Houston. In fact, their primary purpose is to haul goods.

While stuck at a railroad crossing watching dozens of rail cars roll by, have you ever wondered exactly what it is they’re hauling? We talk about what these trains contain, where they’re hauling it to and from, and why freight trains are an important part of transportation and of Houston’s economy. Plus, we discuss the history of trains in Texas.

Our guests are Maureen Crocker, with the Gulf Coast Rail District, Jeff DeGraff of Union Pacific Railroad, and Doug Weiskopf, author of Rails Around Houston and member of the Texas Railroad and Heritage Museum and the National Railway Historical Society.

Sports Monday

The Rockets are rolling into the season’s second half. The Astros continue spring training. And the Dynamo season got underway. We discuss those and other developments in Houston sports with Jeff Balke, who writes for Houston Press and Houstonia Magazine.

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