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“We are convinced it will improve mobility well beyond its neighborhood,” said Jack Drake, former president of the Greenspoint District on Houston’s north side. Others were skeptical. “I am afraid we are going to look up in 10 years and say, ‘What did we do that for?’ ” Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said. Emmett, chairman… Continue reading

Trains and motor vehicles co-exist uneasily in Houston, where increasing road and rail volumes threaten to aggravate the problems created when road traffic meets track. A series of underpasses and street closings east of downtown represents the latest effort to seal off railroad corridors and take vehicle traffic over or under the tracks, while closing… Continue reading

Debbie Keel was a newborn in 1959 when her father carried her into the red brick house at Sycamore and Davis where she would spend her childhood. About four years later, a fertilizer plant was built about two blocks away, across the railroad tracks. Last week, Keel watched an excavator tear down what was left… Continue reading

Jeff Volk is overseeing construction of a lengthy segment of the Grand Parkway, but sometimes the work happens too quickly for him to keep up. “I was through here an hour ago, and it was open,” Volk said as he looked for a way to drive around a spot where workers had laid steel bars… Continue reading

Nearly two months ago, an explosion at a fertilizer plant rocked residents here, ravaging their little Texas prairie town and leaving 16 people dead. This week, it was a denial of public assistance by the Federal Emergency Management Agency that shocked the community. “Everyone is furious, they’re just plain …,“ said Ruby Kotch, stifling herself… Continue reading

At first, a bridge across Brays Bayou was a simple fix to a parking problem in Mason Park east of downtown, Houston parks officials said. Seven years later, it’s still a way for soccer players and fans to find a parking spot, but also a key link – one of a handful of missing links… Continue reading

Every driver knows that green means go, but when it comes to moving vehicles along many Houston roads, it’s green-green-green that matters more. Synchronized traffic lights have become one of the most effective ways to deal with traffic in many cities, including Houston, especially as streets in the urban core handle more traffic and widening… Continue reading

They came to Houston National Cemetery in flip flops and antebellum dresses, leather riding vests and Sunday-best hats, T-shirts and dress blues, but the Memorial Day crowd had one purpose: honor. “No matter what you think of the war, you honor the warrior,” Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson told the crowd Monday during a holiday… Continue reading

When Brandon Bennette started riding the Metro light rail in Houston, he thought it was free. No turnstiles blocked his path and people just seemed to walk onto the platform and board a train. “I didn’t see them pay,” Bennette, 20, said after he disembarked Wednesday at the Downtown Transit Center alongside the Metropolitan Transit… Continue reading

Though the push for the new law focused on bicyclists, the version approved also applies to pedestrians, disabled travelers such as the wheelchair-bound, horseback riders, highway and utility workers, tow truck drivers and those on motorized bicycles and scooters. “It is not just about bicycles,” said Councilwoman Wanda Adams. “This is about everybody.” Anyone convicted… Continue reading