Transit + Freight Rail

Transit and rail projects can change how people move through a region, how communities connect to jobs and services, and how goods move through the economy. Getting there requires years of planning, environmental review, coordination, and conversations with the communities and stakeholders along the way.

Hollaway has supported transit and rail projects across the Houston region and beyond, working alongside transit authorities, rail districts, engineers, planners, and communities on light rail, bus rapid transit, long-range transit planning, and freight rail.

Our experience goes well beyond individual public meetings or environmental documents. We understand how these projects develop over time, how federal requirements shape the process, and how important clear, consistent communication is when improvements are being planned within established neighborhoods and active transportation corridors.

Environmental Planning + NEPA

We help transit and rail teams identify environmental considerations early and develop clear, defensible documentation to support project development, federal review, and decision-making.

• Feasibility and environmental constraints studies
• NEPA documentation (Categorical Exclusions, Environmental Assessments, and Environmental Impact Statements)
• Section 4(f) evaluations
• Section 106 and cultural resources coordination
• Socioeconomic and community impact analyses
• Hazardous materials initial site assessments (Phase I ESAs)
• GIS and environmental data analysis

Natural + Water Resources

Our scientists help project teams understand existing conditions, identify potential impacts, and navigate state and federal environmental requirements along transit and rail corridors.

• Wetland and stream delineations
• Clean Water Act Section 404 and Section 10 permitting support
• Protected species surveys
• Migratory bird, eagle, and freshwater mussel surveys
• Mitigation planning and coordination
• State and federal agency coordination
• Field investigations and technical documentation

Public Involvement + Stakeholder Engagement

Transit and rail projects move through established communities, active transportation corridors, and places people depend on every day. We help project teams engage the people along those corridors, communicate technical information clearly, and create meaningful opportunities for participation throughout project development.

• Public involvement, communications, and engagement strategies
• Messaging and branding development
• Stakeholder identification
• Corridor, community, and property owner outreach
• Business and institutional stakeholder engagement
• Public meetings and hearings
• Virtual and hybrid engagement
• Elected official and agency briefings
• Multilingual community engagement
• Public comment management and documentation
• Issues, crisis, and opposition communications

Creative + Digital Communications

Transit and rail projects are easier to understand when people can see where improvements are proposed, how systems connect, and what changes may mean for the places they use every day. Our creative team turns complex project information into clear, accessible visual communications.

• Project websites and digital engagement platforms
• Interactive corridor mapping and informational presentations
• Project videos and animations
• Drone photography and project documentation
• Public meeting and hearing exhibits
• Infographics, fact sheets, project collateral, and educational materials

Experience Along the Corridor

For Hollaway, transit work in Houston goes back decades.

Our team spent four years embedded within Harris County METRO’s corporate communications team during the expansion of Houston’s light rail system, leading corridor outreach and recurring community meetings while helping launch the agency’s “Going Places” brand. We also helped the Brazoria Fort Bend Rail District define themselves and their goals as they studied the feasibility of rail in their region. And we defined the engagement strategy that supported Texas’ proposed high-speed rail system between Houston and Dallas.

That experience helped shape how we approach corridor engagement today. Corridors are more than lines on a map. They pass businesses, schools, homes, community institutions, and places people depend on every day. The people along them often understand those places in ways technical data alone cannot capture.

We help bring that knowledge into the process while giving communities clear, useful information about what is being considered, what it may mean for them, and how they can participate.

Today, Hollaway continues that work on major transit initiatives while also supporting freight rail planning and the organizations responsible for moving goods across the region.