BikeHouston

For the first time in 170 years, the Columbia Tap has light.

What began in 1856 as a railroad built by enslaved hands to move sugar and cotton from the plantations of the Brazos Valley to Houston and the Port of Galveston has carried a long and complicated history. For generations, trains rumbled through Third Ward, their rail ties soaked in creosote, their engines belching smoke through the heart of our community. The Columbia Tap was a corridor of extraction—moving wealth away while leaving environmental burdens behind. The last train passed in 1985, but the legacy remained.

Tonight, as the lights come on along the Columbia Tap Trail, we mark something far greater than a public infrastructure improvement. We mark a moment of reconciliation.

A corridor once defined by exploitation is becoming a pathway of connection. A railroad of extraction is becoming a trail of healing. A place that once divided communities is becoming a place where neighbors walk, bike, gather, and dream together.

This transformation did not happen by accident. It happened because leaders listened, believed, and acted.

Thank you to District D Councilmember Carolyn Evans-Shabazz —the Council Member of the District of Destination—for her unwavering commitment to this project and to the people of Third Ward. Thank you to Mayor John Whitmire and his administration for supporting the vision and helping make it a reality.

The Columbia Tap's story is still being written. But tonight, under these new lights, we honor the past, acknowledge the pain, and illuminate a brighter future.

The Columbia Tap has light. And so does the future of Third Ward.

"The concept may sound obvious, but it taps into something bigger happening across North America’s city biking scene. Advocacy organizations are increasingly realizing that bike culture grows not only through infrastructure fights and policy wins, but through joy, social connection, and lowering the barrier to participation."

Bike Houston’s New ‘Bike Home From Work’ Party a Shift in City Cycling In Houston, where summer heat hangs heavy long after sunset and freeways often define the city’s image, bike commuting can feel like an act of rebellion.

"In most cities outside northern Europe, men outnumber women on bikes by roughly 3 to 1. In Copenhagen and Amsterdam, the ratio is close to 50/50... Painted lines do not move this number. A plastic bollard barely moves it. A real curb between cars and bikes moves it."

In most cycling cities outside northern Europe, men outnumber women on bikes by roughly 3 to 1. In Copenhagen and Amsterdam, the ratio is close to 50/50. The difference is not culture, and it is not interest. The difference is the curb.

In April 2026, Transportation Alternatives in New York City published one of the cleanest pieces of evidence on this question yet. Their analysis found that districts with the most women cycling to work had nearly six times the protected bike lane access of the districts with the fewest. Across the city as a whole, men are 2.6 times more likely than women to bike to work. The report notes that the protected lane network currently touches just 3 percent of NYC streets and is riddled with gaps and dead ends, which means women trying to ride a normal trip will hit unprotected road again and again before they get where they are going.

The pattern is not unique to New York. A 2022 study published in the journal Cities looked at responses to NYC cycling infrastructure and found the safety bump from protected lanes was significantly larger for women than for men. Researchers at Portland State University, led by Jennifer Dill, reached the same conclusion using survey data across five US cities including Washington DC, Austin, San Francisco, Chicago, and Portland. Women consistently named safety as the top barrier. When the infrastructure changed, the ridership changed with it.

Painted lines do not move this number. A plastic bollard barely moves it. A real curb between cars and bikes moves it.

The infrastructure decision is the gender decision. Every city that has closed the gap built physical separation. Every city that has not, has not. There is no third category.

If you want more women cycling in your city, you do not need a poster campaign. You need concrete.

Join us after work on Thursday, May 28 at Axelrad (1517 Alabama Street) to enjoy great conversation with fellow bike-minded Houstonians, eat free pizza, enter to win bikes from Cannondale and Kyoot, and meet our surprise special guest! We’ll be there from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m.

Special thanks to our sponsor, Bike Law Texas.

https://www.bikehouston.org/events/bike-home-from-work-2026

Join us at Axelrad on Thursday, May 28 for our annual Bike Home from Work Party. Because the only thing more fun than biking *to* work is biking *home from* work.

It's , so fittingly, our friends at Axelrad are going to donate profits from sales of the Bicicletta to BikeHouston all May long!

Ending traffic deaths is a political choice. More elected leaders should make it.

15 Chicago wards experienced zero traffic fatalities in 2025 under Mayor Brandon Johnson’s Complete Streets initiative.

"Tucked into the woodlands of Harris County, a community has forged its own path for years, building an outdoor haven. But now, what they've built could soon be bulldozed."

Houston bike trail war erupts over safety fears and demolition plans "That would be an emotional throat punch for the community."

‼️ Who’s ready to explore more of what Southwest Houston has to offer?

On April 25th, join , and ourselves for a bike ride exploring the Five Corners District and Sims Bayou! We will be visiting current and future projects in the area!

No bike? No problem! There will be complimentary bike rentals on a first-come, first-serve basis. E-bikes are also welcome!

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📅 April 25

📍13845 Blue Ridge Road

⏱️ 10am

A federal judge just stopped the Trump administration from tearing out a bike lane in Washington D.C.

"The Trump administration argued in a court filing that the bike lane removal is essential to public safety... A District Department of Transportation analysis shows that the bike lanes reduced all roadway crashes in the area by 46% and increased vehicle speed by 17%."

Judge Blocks Interior’s Removal of Bike Lane on National Mall The Interior Department can’t pave over popular bike lanes across the National Mall in Washington, a judge ruled Tuesday, granting a group’s motion to block the removal scheduled to begin April 23.