Harris County to spend $37 million on roadway safety in Precinct 1
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A new Harris County program will pump millions of dollars into neighborhoods in need of roadway improvements.
Why it matters: The $37 million Plan Together package aims to improve safety along roads in Precinct 1 and extends an olive branch to local partners for funding opportunities.
Driving the news: Applications opened this month for community leaders to request that their schools and neighborhoods be included.
- Each program has an application deadline in 2026.
Catch up quick: The initiative was included in Harris County's $2.8 billion budget approved by commissioners in September. The package includes:
- A school safety program, which funds sidewalk and crosswalk improvements near schools in unincorporated Precinct 1.
- A street lighting program for unincorporated communities and small governments, like municipal utility districts and tax increment reinvestment zones.
- An "orphan road" program where the county will take over maintaining streets and roads that developers have abandoned in unincorporated Precinct 1.
- And a program that will fund infrastructure that slows traffic on residential streets.
Context: 75 people died on streets maintained by Harris County in 2024, according to Texas Department of Transportation data.
- Of the county's four precincts, Precinct 3 had the most, with 27 deadly crashes in 2024. Precinct 2 had 17 deadly crashes, and Precincts 1 and 4 each had 13 deadly crashes.
- Plan Together is an initiative spearheaded by Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis' concern for traffic crashes, injuries and fatalities.
What they're saying: "Every neighborhood, regardless of ZIP code, deserves safe streets and adequate lighting," Ellis tells Axios.
Between the lines: The Plan Together package comes about as the transportation ideologies of the City of Houston and Ellis' office continue to diverge.
- Ellis' office said it will work with partners so long as the projects "can be built to the precinct's standards" and "stakeholders commit that the project will not be removed or changed without approval by our office."
- Under Mayor John Whitmire, the city removed portions of the Austin Street bike lane in March. Plus, the Blodgett Street bike lane, constructed by Ellis' office in 2023, is under consideration for removal.
What we're watching: How the program shapes up next year.