The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County unveiled the newest addition to its light rail system in December. The North Line—a 5.3-mile track with eight stations—extends the existing 7.5-mile Main Street Red Line from the University of Houston to the Northline Transit Center.

The line is a welcomed addition to a system that serves 37,000 riders per day and has not seen an expansion in a decade, METRO President and CEO Tom Lambert said.

"The feedback we're getting through comments and emails has been very pleasing from the community," he said. "We're seeing them embracing this as another transportation choice. People like being able to walk out, get on the train and go to a meeting or community event without having to worry about driving and traffic."

The North Line opened with a ribbon cutting Dec. 21, during which Houstonians were invited to come out and ride for free. The line cost $756 million to construct, with $450 million coming from federal sources.

In addition to providing more transportation options, Lambert said the rail expansion also has an effect on overall community development.

"If you take a look at the Main Street Line, you can see how the rail has led to more development going on over the past decade," he said. "Residential projects are coming to the downtown area and midtown area."

Two more lines are planned to open in late 2014: the East End line, a 3.3-mile track from downtown to Magnolia Transit, and the Southeast line, a 6.6-mile track from downtown to Palm Center. The overall METRO expansion plan—voted on and supported by the community in a 2003 bond referendum—calls for Uptown and University Lines to be completed at some point as well.

"We went through the federal process where you look at where you can build that will give you the most carrying capacity and what makes the most transportation sense," Lambert said. "Right now, we're working our way through the funding on the next lines."

Lambert noted that rail does not work for all areas, as there is a major ongoing project to bring dedicated express bus lanes to the Uptown Galleria area to address transportation needs there.

For Cy-Fair residents, the rail expansion is most notable for providing an opportunity to avoid the hassles of parking when traveling to destinations around downtown. Park and Ride services allow riders to use parking lots at 28 total stations—including at the Northline and Downtown transit centers—to avoid having to park in more crowded areas like Reliant Park.

"As a multimodal transportation system, we look for ways to tie our rail system in with our dedicated bus lanes and HOV lanes," Lambert said. "Park and rides allow us to use these dedicated guideways to get people where they need to go in a timely fashion and not have to rely on driving."

As METRO looks for ways to develop and integrate the different types of transit options available to commuters, Lambert said making people feel comfortable with public transportation remains a priority in Houston, where people still rely heavily on their cars to get around.

"We use our website as a tool to basically walk people through every aspect of planning a trip with public transportation," he said. "The more we can make people feel comfortable with public transportation, the more they will use it."