Houston is blessed to have professional-caliber arts events offered to the public free of charge every summer. Whether you choose to sit under the stars on the hillside or on a seat under air-conditioned vents and fans, you can watch the drama of Shakespere... Read More...

Drivers of private vehicles aren't the only ones facing pain at the pump. Transit agencies nationwide are staring at budget shortfalls as their own fuel costs continue to soar. Some are increasing revenues by selling ads - from bus and train cards... Read More...

George Foreman, the two-time World Heavyweight Boxing Champion turned electric grill entrepreneur, minister and author, has added another first to his sterling list of accomplishments. On Wednesday, Big George stepped into a boxing ring in front of a... Read More...

Today, Bryan Pennington, senior vice president of engineering and construction, hosted our sixth Web chat. The topic: METRO Solutions and the five light-rail lines we are building. We had 34 people chatting, and we received far more questions than we... Read More...

The North Corridor light-rail line received a watershed decision by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), making METRO eligible for federal funds and allowing the agency to begin construction on the light-rail line. Earlier this month, we received... Read More...

This Thursday, you'll have a chance to ask anything and everything you've ever wanted to know about the five light-rail lines METRO is building. The man in charge of building out those rail lines is Bryan Pennington, senior vice president of engineering... Read More...

Now that we've officially celebrated a groundbreaking of the East End light-rail line, the idea of five rail lines crisscrossing the city is becoming more of a reality. As more of us ride the rail, there are some rules of the rail - common courtesy... Read More...

Recently, I received an e-mail from a gentleman who purchased a Q Card from a Kroger but discovered he couldn't reload it at the point-of-sale machine on one of our Park & Ride lots. "They can be reloaded at Kroger (and I assume on-line),... Read More...

In this new reality of $4/gallon gas, streets closed off to vehicles may offer a new appeal. In New York, bicyclists will be able to ride their bikes from the Brooklyn Bridge to Central Park on roads closed to traffic and open only to walkers and cyclists.... Read More...

Those of you who live in West Houston and drive through tony Spring Valley Village , know not to speed. I remember when I got my driver's license in high school, the warning that was passed down to new drivers: Never speed in Spring Valley. Now drivers... Read More...

They are runaways, abandoned children, street kids. They are the kids who have no place to go - until they reach Covenant House Texas , a shelter for kids ages 10 to 21, with most ranging from 18 to 21 years of age. "This is the population that opts... Read More...

Two recent articles tout Houston as a hot spot - an enviable city in which to live, a city that leads the nation in job creation and affordable housing prices. Kiplinger.com lists Houston as the No. 1 City in the nation in its rating of 2008 Best Cities.... Read More...

Streams of confetti, fireworks and the beat of Latin music created a festive mood as East End community leaders, residents and elected officials celebrated this morning the beginning of light-rail in a historic neighborhood where rail began in Houston.... Read More...

Our fourth episode of METRO Matters features Andrew Skabowski, senior director of bus maintenance/operations, who talks about how we're going green in the suburbs with our new MCI commuter coaches . This summer we road-tested one of the new commuter... Read More...

This morning, National Public Radio featured a Congressman who's been biking to work for the past 12 years. Democratic Congressman Earl Blumenauer says to fix the oil crisis, we need to create a bike-to-work culture in every state. He heads the bipartisan... Read More...

When you're rushing to or from work, nothing beats slipping into an HOV lane - if you have the proper number of occupants, of course - and zipping along while hundreds of other cars are crawling in congested traffic. But if you drive the HOV lane,... Read More...

METRO marked a milestone yesterday with the approval by City Council of a consent agreement that gives us permission to build five rail lines on city streets. But that agreement covers more than permission to build five light-rail lines. METRO is also... Read More...

Today, City Council overwhelmingly approved a consent agreement between the city and METRO to build five light-rail lines on city streets. The vote was 13-2. With this agreement, we can move forward with Phase 2 of METRO Solutions and our goal of completing... Read More...

Tomorrow is the third annual, national Dump the Pump Day in which transit agencies nationwide are urging people to take public transit, save gas and help save the environment. If you’ve never tried METRO before, it’s a good day to take a ride... Read More...

Metrolink , the regional commuter rail system of Southern California, has introduced the train equivalent of a hybrid to its fleet: an energy-efficient locomotive. "This is sort of the train version of a hybrid car that shuts itself off when it's... Read More...

Anyone who buys groceries or patronizes certain fast-food eateries has probably noticed vending machines where you can rent a movie for $1 a night. Now commuters in the San Francisco Bay Area can check out books when riding the Bay Area Rapid Transit... Read More...

A loose wheel nut on a tire can spell disaster if you're driving a bus. Now METRO has installed tiny, neon-green triangular rings that are giving passengers a safer ride. Wheel-Check is a loose wheel-nut indicator. The plastic rings sit on top of... Read More...

With oil prices jumping more than $6 today in early trading and settling by noon at $138.30 a barrel, that means more pain at the pump for consumers. Nationwide, the price of gas averaged $4.052 a gallon, and in Texas, $3.931 a gallon. In Houston, regular... Read More...

Ever since fuel prices started a steady climb with no relief in sight, more commuters from the suburbs have been parking their cars and riding METRO to the workplace. If this includes you, I'm sure you've noticed the standing-room-only crowds... Read More...

More and more commuters are starting to use both bikes and buses to get around town. We launched our bikes-on-buses program in April 2007, installing racks that carry two bikes each. Since then, we've seen incremental growth in the use of those racks... Read More...