Our coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic examines the disease's effects on Houston and the surrounding region, both now and once the outbreak is over.
Let’s fund parks like the essential infrastructure they are
Carol Coletta, president and CEO of the Memphis River Parks Partnership and a thought leader on urban issues, believes in the power of civic commons to benefit the common good.
Pandemic pivot: My favorite street is closed to cars — but open to people
My favorite street is closed to cars at the moment. But not to people. And that’s just fine with me.
Electric bike subsidies would empower more people to use cars less
As people started to work from home, eat at home and entertain themselves at home, they quickly began looking for a way out — of the house. Many discovered — or rediscovered — the restorative powers of cooking, taking a walk, playing board games, working jigsaw puzzles and, of course, riding a bike.
We’ll overcome COVID-19, but can we overcome 400 years of wrongs?
As we reimagine the future of cities after COVID-19, how much emphasis will we place on segregation? Institutionalized racism has never ceased to become a part of the infrastructure in many new developments. In many cities, towns and hamlets, Blacks live on the east side, across the tracks, in “shack town,” what some call “The Bottoms.”
How 420 households can reveal COVID-19’s prevalence in Houston
If you’ve had the coronavirus, does that protect you from being infected again? And if so, how long does that immunity last?
Update: Evictions cost Harris County over $240 million a year — that was before COVID-19
The United States is facing a major wave of evictions driven by the economic impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak.
COVID-19 has hit Houstonians harder financially than NYC, LA and Chicago residents
More than 60% of households in Houston say they’ve faced serious financial problems because of the coronavirus pandemic. Those problems include using up all or most of their savings (41%) and serious problems paying their credit card bills, loans or other debt (41%), according to a five-part polling series examining the health and economic impact of the coronavirus on households in the four largest U.S. cities — New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston.
What transit equity means to a transit-dependent rider in a car-centric city
LINK Houston advocates for a robust and equitable transportation network so that all people can reach opportunity. We believe that transportation — how we get to where we need to go — should not be a barrier to accessing opportunities. For many Black communities and other communities of color across Houston, a lack of equitable investments continues to perpetuate long-standing and racial disadvantages. LINK Houston is working to change that system by shaping transportation-related policies through data analysis and community engagement.
Houston Health Department Antibody Testing Survey
What transit agencies get wrong about equity, and how to get it right
At the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, transit agencies ordered blunt service cuts across their system, ignoring that riders’ travel needs varied.