no prob, nopo

New North Post Oak pedestrian bridge providing safe passage to Memorial Park and more now open

The North Post Oak Road Pedestrian Bridge creates safe passage for runners, cyclists, and pederstrians in the area.

Photo courtesy of METRO

Houston city officials and top METRO brass cut the ceremonial large blue ribbon to officially open the new North Post Oak Road Pedestrian Bridge on Tuesday, October 17, marking the completion of a project that started in February 2022.

But the opening of the new bridge, which is 600 feet long, 14 feet wide, and crosses over 17 lanes of the Katy Freeway traffic, also marks a new day for Inner Loop and Post Oak-area residents. "Before this bridge, there simply wasn't a safe and convenient option for pedestrians or cyclists to cross I-10 via Post Oak," METRO spokesperson Doug Delony tells CultureMap. "Driving was often the only choice."

That's putting it lightly, as residents are all to aware. Typically, walkers, runners, and cyclists traversing N. Post Oak and Post Oak Roads en route to Memorial Park or surrounding points had to negotiate limited sidewalk access and constant car traffic. But now, "this bridge completely separates you from Post Oak Road," adds Delony.

Specifically, METRO's new bridge runs parallel to Post Oak Road as it crosses over I-10 (aka the Katy Freeway) and sits just east of Silber Road and west of the 610 West Loop. "Essentially, this is Post Oak Road going over I-10," Delony summarizes.

North Post Oak Road Pedestrian Bridge map The bridge starts at METRO's Northwest Transit Center and crosses over 17 I-10 lanes.Map courtesy of METRO

Those who utilize the METRO Northwest Transit Center will find travel and use much easier; the bridge also creates a crucial link to N. Post Oak Road and surrounding neighborhoods, restaurants, and retail, as well as an easy artery to Memorial Park for walkers and bikers.

METRO announced plans for the North Post Oak Road Pedestrian Bridge in February 2020. Along the way, the agency solicited and received project input from residents, local businesses, and neighborhood stakeholders, all of whom METRO board chair Sanjay Ramabhadran credits for playing "integral roles" in its development.

For those who champion good urban planning, the new bridge is a strong step to a more walkable city. For others, it's a big win for access to Houston's crown jewel. "Oh yes," says Delony, "people are always looking to connect to Memorial Park."

H-Town rising

Houston leaps back into top 50 'World's Best Cities' list for 2025

Photo by Adrian Newell on Unsplash

Houston made a big leap back into the top 50, ranking No. 40, after previously plummeting into No. 72 last year.

Lively Houston has regained its rightful place among the top 50 best cities in the world, according to a prestigious new report by Resonance Consultancy.

The Canada-based real estate and tourism marketing advisors ranked Houston the 40th best city worldwide for 2025 in its annual "World's Best Cities" list.

The report quantifies the relative qualities of livability, "lovability," and prosperity for the world's top 100 cities with metropolitan populations of 1 million or more. New to the 10th anniversary edition, Resonance partnered with global market researchers Ipsos to include perception-based data into the rankings, surveying over 22,000 people in 30 countries worldwide to determine "the most desirable places to visit, live or work."

Houston made a major rebound after plummeting to No. 73 in last year's report. In 2022, Houston ranked No. 42.

Resonance refers to its previous "World's Best Cities" reports and its 2024 "America's Best Cities" list – which ranked Houston in the top 10 – when explaining the Bayou City's successes. The report praised Houston's vast cultural diversity and placed a great focus on its economic prosperity, even going so far as to suggest Houston residents make more money "and can sock more away."

"...[W]here America’s fourth-largest city truly takes off is in its economic heft and wealth, ranking No. 9 globally for GDP per Capita and No. 14 for Fortune 500 companies in town," the report said. "All that rolls up into an overall Prosperity index ranking of No. 36, which is even more impressive given the No. 14-ranked Price-to Income Ratio [of the city]."

Elsewhere in Texas, Austin and Dallas also earned spots on the World's Best Cities list for 2025, but only one made a similar rebound from the previous year's rankings. Dallas moved up from No. 66 in last year's report to its current rank as No. 55. Meanwhile, Austin took its first tumble out of the 43rd spot (which it had occupied for two years straight) and now ranks No. 53.

London held onto its crown as the No. 1 best city in the world for 2025, followed by New York (No. 2), Paris (No. 3), Tokyo (No. 4), and Singapore (No. 5).