On August 13 the METRO Board of Directors officially called for a $3.5 billion bond referendum to help fund its METRONext long-range plan.
The bond will not raise any taxes but, if approved by voters on November 5, will allow the transit authority to leverage expected future moneys to fund transit improvements over the next 20 years.
In our 2018 Equity in Transit report, we determined that close to one million Houstonians need more affordable transportation options to access opportunities. In the report we also provided recommendations for improvements to frequency of service, span of service hours, reliability of the system, and accessibility for people with a disability. Over the past 18 months we have worked closely with several communities across the METRO service area to ensure community-centered recommendations – recommendations to improve how often transit arrives, that it comes on time, that it runs from early morning to late evening, and that it is accessible – are prioritized in the long-range plan.
For more information on METRONext, please see here.