Cool Public Transportation

The free downtown trolley finally returns — only it's a Green bus blowingnatural gas

Each stop is well-labeled,and the bright green bus is distinct from the METROfleet.
Photo by Katya Horner
Greenlink launched in Houston on Monday.
Photo by Katya Horner

A free downtown trolley is a romantic idea and a seemingly practical one, but one that has been found unsustainable. When METRO began charging a 50 cent fare for trolley rides in 2004, the death knell was sounded: The line closed in 2005, and with it, the affordability and convenience of cool public transportation in downtown Houston.

But that's all changed this week with a partnership between the Houston Downtown Management District, the BG Group and Houston First Corporation reprising that hop-on-hop-off transportation with METRO-operated Greenlink.

The 18-stop, 2.5 mile circular route through downtown connects cultural centers and tourist destinations, METRO transit hubs and entertainment, to provide Houstonians and visitors with free and easy transit between the hours of 6:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m.

After a wait time of less than two minutes at stop No. 1, I found myself on a powerfully air conditioned bus, smelling strongly of brand new upholstery.

CultureMap experimented with the Greenlink during the lunch hour on Wednesday to see what riders have in store.

After a wait time of less than two minutes at stop No. 1 (on the corner of Smith Street and McKinney Street), I found myself on a powerfully air conditioned bus, smelling strongly of brand new upholstery.

Two other passengers — a businessman carrying a FedEx package, and an older gentleman wearing a baseball cap — shared the 20-something-seat cabin, but alighted, separately, just a few stops later.

I continued the route alone until the corner of Dallas Street and La Branch Street, then stepped off and walked the block to Phoenicia Downtown Market for a cold drink.

I met the Greenline again near the intersection of Caroline Street and Walker Street — this time waiting an agonizing seven minutes and 19 seconds for the approach of the bus (the average time wait time during peak periods is between seven and 10 minutes) — and continued the circuit back to the beginning.

The bus was more full of curious first-time riders on the final leg, with a group of coworkers in business attire and a young family in summer gear, all reading a complimentary Greenlink brochure, discussing rules (no eating or drinking on the bus) and destinations (from the theater district to the George R. Brown and a number of spots in between).

We all disembarked at City Hall, me to wrap up my experiment, and the others to check out the food stalls at the weekly farmer's market.

I listened to the hum of the Compressed Natural Gas-powered bus as it drove away, eyeing its endearingly boxy, bulbous form as pedestrians scrambled past on the sidewalk, sweating through ironed shirts.

Forget convenience and connectivity: This is why the Greenlink is crucial for downtown Houston.

Find more information about how to ride at www.downtownhouston.org.

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income analysis

Texas families need to make this much money for one parent to stay home

Photo by CDC on Unsplash

With costs to raise a child soaring over $20,000 a year in Texas, some households might decide to have one parent work while the other stays at home to raise their child.

As the cost of raising a child balloons in major cities like Houston, many families are weighing the choice between paying for child care or having one parent stay home full-time.

A recent analysis from SmartAsset determined the minimum income one parent needs to earn to support their partner staying at home to raise one child in all 50 states. In Texas — not just Houston — that amount is just under $75,000.

The study used the MIT Living Wage Calculator to compare the annual living wages needed for a household with two working adults and one child, and a household with one working adult, a stay-at-home parent, and one child. The study also calculated how much it would cost to raise a child with two working parents based on factors such as "food, housing, childcare, healthcare, transportation, incremental income taxes and other necessities."

A Texas household with one working parent would need to earn $74,734 a year to support a stay-at-home partner and a child, the report found. If two parents worked in the household, necessitating some additional costs like childcare and transportation, it would require an additional $10,504 in annual income to raise their child.

SmartAsset said the cost to raise a child in Texas in a two-working-parent household adds up to $23,587. Raising a child in Houston, however, is somewhat more affordable. A separate SmartAsset study from June 2025 determined it costs $21,868 to raise a child in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro.

In the report's ranking of states with the highest minimum income needed to support a family with one working adult, a stay-at-home parent, and one child, Texas ranked 32nd on the list.

In other states like Massachusetts, where raising a child can cost more than $40,000 a year, the report acknowledges ways families are working to reduce any financial burdens.

"This often includes considerations around who’s going to work in the household, and whether young children will require paid daycare services while parents are occupied," the report said. "With tradeoffs abound, many parents might seek to understand the minimum income needed to keep the family afloat while allowing the other parent to stay home to raise a young child."

The top 10 states with the lowest minimum income threshold to support a three-person family on one income are:

West Virginia – $68,099
Arkansas – $68,141
Mississippi – $70,242
Kentucky – $70,408
North Dakota – $70,949
Oklahoma – $71,718
Ohio – $72,114
South Dakota – $72,218
Alabama – $72,238
Nebraska – $72,966

texas income smartasset family

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income analysis

Texas families need to make this much money for one parent to stay home