Overview
- Crews began Phase 1 this week, and officials said Monday that more than 300 solar-powered lights will be installed along the four-mile Columbia Tap Trail with roughly 50 placed before the FIFA World Cup.
- Phase 1 is part of a $7.5 million, multi-phase investment led by the Greater Southeast and East Downtown management districts and funded through the Houston-Galveston Area Council, with administration by the Federal Transit Administration.
- Project leaders expect the full set of Phase 1 lights to be in place by fall 2026 and plan additional work through 2027 to add intersection safety upgrades, emergency callboxes and expanded wayfinding and interpretive signage.
- Air Alliance Houston has pledged to install a permanent community air-monitoring network along the trail to track local air quality as a public-health legacy of the improvements.
- The trail follows a historic rail corridor and links the Third Ward, Texas Southern University, East Downtown and parks such as Hermann Park, aiming to improve night-time safety, walking and biking access and neighborhood connectivity.