Insights

Traffic dropped 66%, but it came back and the coronavirus followed

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.

Many cities are rethinking the police, but what are the alternatives?

Investments, institutions and decriminalization all are strategies that can reduce the mandate of police and be more effective in addressing certain “offenses” than the criminal justice solution. This post explores police alternatives for cities, dividing them into three groups: health, relationships and community patrol.

As COVID-19 ebbs and flows, will there be a sea change in cities? It depends on whom you ask.

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?

To better understand police culture, start here

While not all Americans support dismantling or defunding the police, recent surveys show the overwhelming majority do agree that changes in police training are needed. Most also think police officers shouldn’t be protected from being sued by “qualified immunity.” Part 2 of our reading list on policing brings together a collection of works on the culture within police organizations.

COVID-19 survey: Houston area is the hardest hit large metro in America

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.

COVID-19 hot spots emerge across the Sun Belt as states expand reopenings

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

Texas economy ranks near the top for racial equality in a nation with pervasive wealth inequality

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.

The essential role of art has been exhibited during the COVID-19 shutdowns

The sudden closure of museums, galleries, concert halls and theaters in March upended the art world. The resulting financial and personal impacts of the pandemic on artists and art lovers has been enormous. Can the arts stage a comeback?

Will America ever change? Imperfect Houston has shown it can happen

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

Texas named America’s 5th most dangerous state in 2020

The safety rankings were determined by comparing states’ level of coronavirus support, rate of unemployment, uninsured rate and financial costs of climate disasters per capita, among other criteria.

At the complicated intersection of cars, housing and a fast-growing, sprawling city

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.

In Houston, the new normal should include more efforts to reduce air pollution

Stay-at-home orders to slow the spread of COVID-19 resulted in Houstonians driving a lot less. But Houston hasn’t stopped being an industrial city during the pandemic, which shows why reducing all air pollution is key to protecting public health.

Update: COVID-19 Registry shows racial disparities in economic impact of pandemic

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.

Mobility data shows some staying at home more than others during COVID-19 pandemic

Researchers studying the impact of stay-at-home mandates on the area’s environment and infrastructure share insight into which county populations are limiting their movement — and potential exposure to the coronavirus — more than others. 

Staying at home may have saved 4,533 lives in Harris County so far

The number of COVID-19 deaths in the United States is nearing 10,000 and there are close to 340,000 reported cases.