Houston adds 300 solar lights to Columbia Tap Trail ahead of World Cup

Houston has started installing more than 300 solar-powered lights along the Columbia Tap Trail, a move city and neighborhood leaders say could make the four-mile route more usable before dawn, after work and during World Cup traffic around NRG Stadium.

The work began Monday, June 2, on a trail that runs from East Downtown through Third Ward to Brays Bayou south of downtown. Officials said the lights will be placed along the trail’s full length and will provide steadier illumination on the 10-foot-wide paved path, where advocates have long pushed for better lighting, cameras, signage and safer crossings.

The installation is the first phase of a $7.5 million investment in the Columbia Tap corridor. The project is being led by the Greater Southeast Management District with the East Downtown Management District, with funding through the Houston-Galveston Area Council and administration by the Federal Transit Administration.

That spending comes as Houston prepares to host seven 2026 FIFA World Cup matches between June 14 and July 4. The Columbia Tap is being pitched as one of the walkable routes to NRG Stadium, part of a larger “Green Corridor” effort linking East Downtown, the Brays Bayou Greenway and the stadium district.

The trail carries more than just tournament traffic. Completed in 2009, the nearly four-mile hike-and-bike route follows the old Columbia Tap railroad line, which was built in the 1850s by enslaved Black men to move sugar and cotton to the Port of Houston. It passes Texas Southern University, ends near Shell Energy Stadium and connects with the 16.4-mile Brays Bayou Hike and Bike Trail, opening access to Hermann Park, the Houston Zoo and the Museum District.

Safety has been a central issue for years. Houston Southeast says the trail has 33 intersections, none of them signalized, crossing streets with posted speed limits from 30 to 40 mph. Community advocates have argued that lighting is only part of what is needed to make the route feel safer and more connected, especially in Third Ward and the neighborhoods nearby.

Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz said concerns about trouble on the trail have been nonexistent for about the last two years, after patrols increased. Even so, residents and advocates have continued to press for upgrades they say would make the corridor more inviting for everyday use and for special events drawing thousands of visitors.

Ed Pettitt, founder of Friends of Columbia Tap Trail, has said the corridor should be recognized not just as a bike path but as an African American heritage and environmental justice interpretive trail. Community groups in Third Ward, including TMO Houston, have also backed the investment after months of meetings with city officials.