It's been almost a decade now since we got light rail in Austin and my middle-schooler just started…read moreriding the train to/from school each day (so far, we love it!), so I guess it's about time for me to give an updated look at our local stop, the Howard MetroRail Station. Howard (aka Stop #5540) https://www.capmetro.org/stopdetail/index.php?stop=5540) is a park & ride, so there are 301 spaces adjacent to the train stop which serves the following bus routes in addition to the 550 MetroRail Red Line: 50 Round Rock/Howard Station https://www.capmetro.org/schedmap/?svc=0&f1=50&s=0&d=N 243 Wells Branch https://www.capmetro.org/schedmap/?svc=0&f1=243&s=0&d=E 980 North MoPac Express https://www.capmetro.org/schedmap/?svc=4&f1=980&s=0&d=N (well, you have to walk/scoot/bike about 1/2 mile to New Life Church on southbound Mopac to reach this one) Everything you need to know about how to use CapMetro services is available in their full system map https://www.capmetro.org/uploadedFiles/New2016/Plan_Your_Trip/Destinations_Schedule_Book/system_map.pdf and Destinations book https://www.capmetro.org/uploadedFiles/New2016/Plan_Your_Trip/Destinations_Schedule_Book/Schedulebook_web.pdf . Trains arrive every 15-30 minutes during the daily service hours, which vary according to the season (mostly whether school is in session) and day of the week. Keep in mind that southbound and northbound trains share the same tracks, so there's a limit to how many more trains can be feasibly be added to the mix. Check the full Red Line schedule https://www.capmetro.org/current_schedules/pdf/550.pdf for details and follow CapMetro on social to keep up with last minute service alerts. It's still pretty pricey to ride the train, $7 for an unlimited day pass or $3.50 for a single trip (which must be used within 1 hour of purchase). All day MetroRail passes do not require transfer fees, so you can take as many trains as you need to reach your final destination (although I tend to walk, run, or use a kickscooter, myself; you can also try one of the many bike & e-scooter rental options downtown). If you're visiting and will be using the train for 4 or more days, your best option is the 7-day pass at $27.50. If you are a student, a senior citizen, or one of a few other special groups, you can get 1/2 priced passes, but you need to show proof of eligibility when tickets are validated or checked by fare enforcement. Don't try to cheat, or you'll get a $75 ticket! More about reduced fares here: https://www.capmetro.org/rfid/ Perhaps because it is so pricey, the degree of riff-raff & shenanigans one encounters on the train seems pretty low for public transport, but YMMV. Members of the homeless encampment just down the street at the Mopac overpass do sometimes make their way over to the station, but we've never encountered any trouble from fellow humans at this station or on the train over the years. Morning & evening commuter rides are pretty quiet and comfortable, although you may need to stand during the most popular morning southbound and evening northbound trips. Back at the launch in 2010, the last northbound MetroRail trip of the day was around 6:30p, a bummer if you had ideas of heading downtown for an evening of merriment with no need to drive or park. That's still true most of the week (it's still a commuter rail service & it still shares the tracks with freight trains overnight) but on Fridays & Saturdays, we now have extended service until after midnight, with the last train from the Convention Center departing northbound at 1:45am on Friday night and 2:30am on Saturday night. They also extend the service hours during special events like SXSW and ACL Fest, but beware that those trains get packed! Another big change since the beginning is that the station's ticket kiosks no longer take credit cards AND they do not give back change. Instead, you get a paper voucher that must be used toward additional CapMetro services within 15 days or the value disappears! For this reason alone, it's generally to your advantage to put the CapMetro app on your smartphone and make your ticket purchases & activations there. You also get timely service alerts on the app when there are unexpected delays or other emerging issues with the train service. Tip: Follow on Twitter @CapMetroATX for up-to-the-minute news on changes to the service schedule & special discounts from partner businesses. Use the CapMetro comment form https://app.capmetro.org/ServiceOneWebCCR to report issues found at the station or with a specific ride experience. Trains fill up during special events like SXSW, so prepare a plan B (like ride share or one of the night-owl buses https://www.capmetro.org/latenight/) for getting back up north at the end of the day if you fail to get on the last train home.

The metro rail is super convenient and fast. The trains equipped with free WiFi. Always clean but…read morefills up quickly during the rush. The station itself has plenty parking, could be lighted a little more but appears to be fairly safe. I've seen metro police there a couple times not sure if it was just to patrol or if something occurred.

Being a train enthusiast I was a bit excited to go on the "Noth Pole Flyer" out of Bertrum TX on…read moreDecember 13, 2025 with my two grandkids and thier parents, six people in total. So this is a grandparents perspective. Upon arrival to the depot area, there is no indication of event parking as the lighting was very poor at 6:15 at night. The web site mentioned free parking but had no maps of the area. What I saw coming from the east, was a long row of cars parked in a Hodge podge fashion along the tracks. We ended up parking by the library across the highway. (Short walk with a light to cross with). I'll mention this again later. I came across a small sign in the middle of a crowd that says "no alcohol, no weapons licensed or otherwise." Would be nice to know before this Texan shows up armed. So had to run back to the car to secure my weapon. Ehh, minor inconvenience. BTW, the rules are on the web site. We pick up our tickets at will call and wait. The train comes up and parks. The engine was a short haul/swicher unit, no steam, with very beautiful vintage passenger cars. My family's car just happened to stop right in front of us, #41. We boarded and it was like going back in time. We found our seats easy enough. However, keeping in mind, either people were a lot taller and thinnier back then, or they have tall tables and do like airlines and add extra tables. It was tight. Little wiggle room for an adult. If you are in the window seat, you get to look forward and to the side. You cannot turn around to see what is behind you. If you adjust your seat, you are bumping the person behind you. And trust me, every car is packed. Being a night trip, there is nothing to see outside. So bring stuff for the kiddos to do and snacks and drinks. The two hour trip is loud. Kids are loud, and you have adults talking over the kids. My train enthusiast self went on an exploring expedition through a lot of the other cars. Some like mine had 4 person tables, others 4 person commuter recling seats with no tables. Some had one bathroom available others had two. I stood between two cars and just watched the scenery go by. It was a refreshing change to the snot-monsters noise in my car. The endless coco was good. Very hot. Eventually a minstrel came out and started some interactive Christmas carols. Pretty good. Simultaneously, a balloon guy came out making hats and the sorts for the kids. Then out came the forgetable part, a story teller. Hard to hear, not well versed in the story and choppy in her reading. Alas, Mrs Clause with some very different tasting, highly addictive cookie for everyone, saved the day. The highlight of the adventure was Santa. The staff had his appearance very organized and orderly. Each table had a chance to take photos with the big guy. The most unimaginable gift was given. A wooden train whistle to about 15-20 kids, my own grandkids included. Imagine if you will, about 30 minutes left in the trip with the incessant "tweet-tweet-tweet" penetrating that one nerve that goes from your ears to your feet and makes your spine want jump out of the window. Now, after a engine switch from one end to the other delay, we headed into the depot. We didn't exit the way we got on. We got on the depot side (city side), and exited on the parking lot side. Well that's fine and great. But if you park on the city side, you are blocked by the train with only two ways to get to your vehicle. Oh yes, I said a bunch of nasty, nasty cuss words. You either wait for a full train to disembark and hope they let you walk through, or, you walk around the shortest part of the train and back to the crossing light I mentioned earlier. So that's the trip review. But now to the staff. Man those cats get 5-stars. Friendly, informative and in character. I can't imagin doing that trip 5-6 times a day. They made an otherwise blah trip much, much nicer. This is a one time experience with kids. Maybe, someday, my wife and I will try a romantic trip through hill country or something like that.

The staff is incredibly friendly, and the check-in process couldn't be easier. The train cars are…read moreimpressively clean and well-kept, and we really enjoyed learning about the history behind the ride. It's a unique and nostalgic experience that takes you back in time. While I do wish the views along the route were a bit more scenic, the overall experience was still absolutely worth it and I would gladly do it again. If you're looking for something different to do around Austin, please support this train. It's a special kind of adventure you don't find every day.

Easy peasy ride downtown. Plenty of parking, WiFi, and never crowded... The trains are always…read moreclean, we always score the seats with extra legroom and the price is right! Hopefully we will see an expansion of the rail service...

I take the rail down to acc highland campus every day during each semester. The station is always…read morevery clean and the conductor is very welcoming. It's a great and convenient resource to use if you can't afford housing down in Austin. For those who live in Leander, please remember to vote to save this amazing transit resource.

I recently took Amtrak to Dallas for a long weekend. It was SXSW and Spring Break and the train was…read morepacked which did not matter much to me as I had booked a roomette for privacy and comfort. The ride up to Dallas from Austin was exceptionally smooth, never had a journey on that route so smooth.  After boarding, the first class attendant informed me that the diner was still serving breakfast so I made a mad dash to the diner car for a lite breakfast snack, Three Cheese Omelet, Swiss, Cheddar,and Pepper Jack with Peewee Potatoes and Pork Sausage, delicious and surprisingly filling.  I opted to have lunch in my roomette, Asian BBQ Glazed Salmon, roasted salmon with an Asian BBQ sauce served with broccoli, lemongrass scented rice, shiitake mushrooms, carrots, peppers, and scallions. I was a bit disappointed with the Asian BBQ sauce, it tasted more like Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce. I was expecting a Teriyaki inspired sauce. All in all it was a very enjoyable and therapeutic. journey to Dallas. And if one has the time, I highly recommend booking a roomette which is less expensive than flying first class and you get two meals that one can enjoy in the diner car or the privacy of your roomette. On a flight, you'll be lucky to get a cup of water on such a short flight.

It's like a train in a 3rd world country. No bathrooms or water on our sleeper car.have to go 1 or…read more2 cars down.been like this for at least 12 hours

MetroRail helps me save in gas and staff is friendly, I just wish they would be more assertive and…read moretell passengers that like to put their stinking feet up on the seats to please put them down. I mean, you're not in your house, you're using a public transportation! Who likes to sit down on a seat where dirty shoes have been?! Imagine if he has doggo crap on them and he doesn't know! Disgusting! Please be conscious of the space you're using and other people using it!

Experienced the Metro Rail for the first time, and it was a fantastic journey! Having been in the…read moreTexas Austin area for seven years, my family and I decided to take the train from Leander station to downtown Austin for the first time. The day pass for adults at $7 each was a great deal, especially since kids ride for free. The interior of the train was impressively clean--seriously, spotless--and well-ventilated, making the ride comfortable from start to finish. The conductors were friendly and accommodating, adding to the overall positive experience. The children particularly enjoyed the ride, making it a memorable family outing. Highly recommend the Metro Rail for a convenient, clean, and enjoyable transportation option in the Austin area!

I am neutral about this station, I wouldn't say it's the best station…read more I feel like this station is centrally located and gets a lot of use with people coming and going but there is no parking. I have no idea why there is no parking, there is street parking but it can be hard to find, and you could be walking a long distance to get to the station. In addition, it's not a very well lit area if you plan on taking the station at night. It's a bummer this station is badly planned. Since there are so many housing complex going up in and around the Domain, this is the station for all those people. I wish it had some type of parking.

When this station first opened getting to it was a challenge, but at least it was transit…read moreaccessible. Then the agency had this 'great idea' to cut the 392 in half--because it was not difficult enough to access this station. I can't access the facility nearest my house anymore. And they did not even listen to customer feedback.

Easy way to travel downtown at less expense than Uber. Clean and there is a covered area with…read morelimited seating. If you have not ridden the train before, it is a bit confusing so you might do some research on-line in advance. There is a cash only ticket machine or you have to download the Umo app. No way to pay on the train. I do tend to avoid the station after dark due to the presence of several homeless men.

Train station at Crestview has northbound and southbound access. The outside station has covered…read morebenches and a ticket machine (cash only ) for credit you have to download UMO app. The buses pick up 50 feet away if you're making a connection. The station is clean but has no restroom. Overall nice place to wait for a train. Just like other places there is a PEH presence and it makes my girlfriend nervous especially at night, so she does not ride after dark. Other than that issue and no bathroom it's clean and not a bad place to wait for your train.

So I planned a ride to DFW airport on May 20th, while the schedule said it was departing at 7:20…read moream, there was a "train incident" that caused a total of a 3 hour delay. So rather than arriving at 2 pm, it was 5 pm, causing a missed flight scheduled at 4:45 leading to an extra $194 to make up for one flight. Overall, pretty minimal station with an Amtrak map made from 2011 instead of 2025.

Pretty sweet way to get around. Amtrak agents generally friendly. Train is late very often,…read moreotherwise I'd give it more stars.

Overall disappointing experience with this location, the staff and the service. The station is…read morefilthy. There is no sign of employees except for the occasional sighting. The train sat there for well over 90 minutes without letting anyone board. The "dining car" had issues with meals and you had to make reservations (on a train!)! The diner car staff had no problem announcing that in El Paso there is a burrito lady like 6 times only to see a uniformed Amtrak woman helping this unlicensed vendor on the platform!!! I think she was making change! The cafe was the saving grace as you cannot just go eat in the dining car. I thought this would be fun and relaxing but it turned out to be so much like riding a Greyhound bus that it will probably be the last time in my life that I try it. Spend the money, take a plane or drive yourself.

Omg ! Took train from Tucson to to San Antonio. Train was great seating . Bathroom could use…read moresanitary cleaning every 2 hrs . Everyone using bathroom makes me gross out ! Other than that , bringing a blanket would have helped. Once we got to San Antonio, that station needs upgrade bad!!! So ugly n old n it's very sm looks like a spooky area to be ! They should considered that it's next to landmarks?? N make it nice n pleasant looking . I didnt want to go inside it was packed w people waiting to get on the train . Omg they looked like sardines. We waited outside n called a taxi , It was freezing but better than smelling n breathing all those people inside yak!!! San Antonio clean up ur train station!!!