Urban Edge Stories by Andy Olin

As moratoriums on evictions expire and bonus unemployment benefits run out, many in Houston and across Texas face increasing uncertainty about their ability to pay for a place to live.

Since mid-March, ridership has plummeted and there’s concern about a “transit death spiral.” But new studies show that public transportation isn’t a major source of coronavirus transmission.

Traffic levels fell dramatically throughout the Houston metro area as people were ordered to stay at home and businesses were closed to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 — and it worked. But, as the economy was reopened and people returned to work, restaurants, bars, beaches and more, traffic levels and infection rates increased.

Surges, hot spots, reopenings and reclosings. As the pandemic’s jagged sawtooth trend line continues to cut across the nation, uncertainty remains. In the end, how much will the composition of urban and suburban areas change?

Jobless claims, along with COVID-19 cases, deaths and hospitalizations, are on the rise in Texas. And the social and economic impacts seem to be the greatest in the Houston metropolitan area.

Under Texas law, drivers are required to yield the right of way to people in a crosswalk, marked or unmarked. But for the most part, Houston drivers ignore the rules. In the end, the driving laws in the state are not protecting vulnerable road users. 

Texas and other small-government Sun Belt states, which were already were limited in their capacity to respond in times of economic crisis, were hit hard by big drops in consumer spending resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. As the second part of the pandemic’s first wave now washes over many of these states, it remains to be seen what effect it will have on their floundering economies.

Amid reopenings, Texas, Arizona, Florida, Oklahoma and California are among many states seeing large spikes in new coronavirus infections. 

The efforts of demonstrators calling for racial justice for Black Americans has evolved into a global movement to address the economic, environmental, educational and health care disparities created by systemic racism in the United States. A new report compares and ranks the economies of all 50 states in terms of racial equality.

In “Prophetic City,” Stephen Klineberg shows us where change has taken Houston and where it’s likely to take the nation.

Research related to Houston’s problems with ‘newly poor’ neighborhoods, housing affordability, auto loan debt, transportation and COVID-19 all point to one overarching issue: Inequality.

The economic downturn resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak coupled with the pandemic being politicized by some will challenge the feelings of solidarity and trust that have been building in Houston in recent years. It’s important to remember the city and surrounding region’s ability to unite in the face of disaster.

Interviews for the 2020 Kinder Houston Area Survey were conducted just before the world was upended. The results of the survey reflect the existing disparities in health care and economics that the COVID-19 outbreak has underscored and exacerbated. 

As restaurants in Houston reopen and expand beyond to-go and delivery service, they’re required to provide more space between diners. In a number of cities, steps are being taken to allow businesses like restaurants to temporarily use outdoor space and parking lots to help with adequate physical distancing.

Data analysis shows the confirmed cases and deaths per 100,000 residents in the 53 U.S. metropolitan areas with a population of 1 million or more. 

More than 40% of Houston-area households have lost income as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. And the pandemic appears to be taking a greater economic toll on African American and Hispanic households than white and Asian American households, according to the latest survey results from Rice University’s COVID-19 Registry.

For those who haven’t completed the ongoing 2020 Census, an important reason to respond online, by phone or by mail to the nine-question survey is the neighbor next door, two doors down or down the street.

Has the COVID-19 crisis made you more aware of things you didn’t properly appreciate before the outbreak? What have you learned new reverence for since life was disrupted?

Over the years, more and more of our public space has been given over to cars and congestion while pedestrians, cyclists and others have been squeezed out. One possible silver lining to the COVID-19 pandemic is the chance to give some of that space back.

Some 80% of Texas’ 29 million residents live in large cities or metropolitan areas, which are the economic drivers in the state. If the recovery is going to be successful after the COVID-19 pandemic ends, it’s important that preparations begin now.