Houston, Texas

Houston is the largest city within the state of Texas, fourth in the United States, and the second-largest economic area of the Gulf Coast region. The city is the county seat of Harris County, the third most populous county in the country. A portion of southwest Houston extends into Fort Bend County and a small portion in the northeast extends into Montgomery County.

Transportation

Highways

See also: List of highways in Houston

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For a road map of Houston, click here

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Houston does not have zoning found in many cities. Urban sprawl and hot, humid summers have made automobiles the favored means of transportation. Houston also has excessive ozone levels and is ranked among the most ozone-polluted cities in the United States.

Related Topics:
Urban sprawl - Ozone

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Houston freeways are heavily traveled and often under construction to meet the demands of continuing growth. Interstate 45 south has been in a continuous state of construction, in one portion or another, almost since the first segment was built in 1952. Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) planners have sought ways to reduce rush hour congestion, primarly through High-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane for vans and carpools. Timed freeway entrances, which regulate the addition of cars to the freeway, are also common. Houston has an extensive network of freeway cameras linked to a transit control center to monitor and study traffic.

Related Topics:
Interstate 45 - 1952 - High-occupancy vehicle

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One characteristic of Houston's freeways (and Texas freeways in general) are its frontage roads (which locals call "feeders"). Alongside most freeways are two to four lanes in each direction parallel to the freeway permitting easy access to individual city streets. Frontage roads provide access to the freeway from gas stations and retail stores. New landscaping projects and a longstanding ban on new billboards are ways Houston has tried to control the potential side effects of convenience.

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Houston has a hub-and-spoke freeway structure with multiple loops. The innermost is Interstate 610, forming approximately a 10 mile diameter loop around downtown. The roughly square "Loop-610" is quartered into "North Loop," "South Loop," "West Loop," and "East Loop." The roads of Texas Beltway 8 and their freeway core, the Sam Houston Tollway, are the next loop, at a diameter of roughly 25 miles. Most of this freeway requires payment of $1.25 toll every five or ten miles ($3.00 toll when crossing the Houston Ship Channel). A controversial proposed highway project, Texas Highway 99, would form a third loop outside of Houston. Currently, the completed portion of Texas Highway 99 runs from just north of Interstate 10, west of Houston, to U.S. Highway 59 in Sugar Land, southwest of Houston, and was completed in 1994. The next portion to be constructed is from the current terminus at U.S. Highway 59 to Texas Highway 288 in Brazoria County.

Related Topics:
Hub-and-spoke - Interstate 610 - Texas Beltway 8 - Texas Highway 99 - Interstate 10 - U.S. Highway 59 - Sugar Land - 1994 - Brazoria County

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Mass transit

The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas, or METRO, provides public transportation in the form of buses, trolleys and lift vans. Uptown, METRO provides free service on the Uptown Shuttle.

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METRO began running light rail service (METRORail) on January 1, 2004. Currently the track is rather short — it runs about 8 miles (13 km) primarily along Main Street from central Downtown Houston to the Texas Medical Center and Reliant Park. A 27-mile (43 km) expansion has been approved to run the service from Uptown (the Galleria area) through Texas Southern University, ending at the University of Houston campus. METRO's various forms of public transportation still do not connect the suburbs to the greater city, causing Houstonians to rely on the automobile as a primary source of transportation.

Related Topics:
METRORail - January 1 - 2004 - Downtown Houston - Texas Medical Center - Reliant Park - Texas Southern University - University of Houston

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Airports

Houston is served by George Bush Intercontinental Airport and William P. Hobby Airport (named Houston International Airport until 1963). Bush Intercontinental handles all of the city's international traffic, while Hobby services shorter-haul routes. Hobby is also the only airport in the city served by Southwest Airlines. Bush Intercontinental is the hub airport for Continental Airlines, which is headquartered in Houston.

Related Topics:
George Bush Intercontinental Airport - William P. Hobby Airport - 1963 - Southwest Airlines - Continental Airlines

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The city's third-largest airport, Ellington Field, in the past was used to ferry passengers between Galveston County and Bush Intercontinential, to cut down on driving time. Passenger flights ended on September 7, 2004.

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Located in Sugar Land, southwest of Houston, is the Sugar Land Regional Airport, formerly Sugar Land Municipal Airport. Sugar Land Regional is the fourth largest airport in the greater Houston area, and the only general reliever airport in the southwest sector. The airport mostly serves corporate, governmental and private planes.

Related Topics:
Sugar Land - Sugar Land Regional Airport

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