Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo is reimagining what it means to oversee roads and bridges by looking beyond fixing potholes to the future of green, comprehensive, and equitable transportation infrastructure.

Key Accomplishments

• Fought for better transit options. Recognizing the need for innovative transit-oriented solutions instead of just wider highways, Judge Hidalgo fought to address community concerns about the widening of I-45 and will work with METRO to implement the new METROnext bond initiative. Additionally, the County is performing the first-ever countywide mobility needs assessment to ensure that future transportation development is coordinated, multimodal, and serves the needs of all Harris County residents.

• Expanded “Tow and Go” across Harris County to reduce traffic congestion and secondary crashes by removing stalled vehicles from freeways for no cost to the driver. The service expanded from 175 miles of coverage to 245 miles of coverage through most of Harris County, including the unincorporated areas.

• Reformed the way the county allocates transportation dollars by replacing the outmoded ad hoc precinct-by-precinct system with a comprehensive county-wide approach intended to ensure better regional planning, effectiveness, and transparency.

• Created a new Broadband Office to ensure that every Harris County resident has access to broadband internet access.

• Invested 3.2 Million to continue providing free public Wi-Fi to an estimated 20,000 families through the 2021-2022 school year at community centers, parks, libraries, and on community buses, and expand service to between 5,000 and 9,000 users.

• Paved the way for future development of hike and bike trails and green spaces by:
  • Reaching an agreement with CenterPoint Energy securing the rights to construct 10 foot wide hike and bike trails within utility corridors and easements.
  • Conducting planning studies and developing detailed plans for trails along the toll road system and for construction of the historical Emancipation Trail.
  • Exploring green alternatives such as pedestrian, bikeway, and green space options for the Hardy Toll Downtown Connector corridor that fully take into consideration the local community and the region's existing and future transportation network.

• Opened the new Harris County Pets Resource Center to provide a state-of-the-art facility with three and a half times the amount of space as the original shelter that it replaced, increasing capacity to 525 animals.