Memorial Park Improvements Prompt Look for Safe Access Routes for Runners, Cyclists
Houston Chronicle | by Dug Begley | 7.12.21
Cody Foster knows how tough it can be to cross Westcott on Blossom, just steps from Memorial Park. Driving south on Westcott once, Foster recalls having to slam the brakes to avoid hitting a boy on a bicycle who darted in front of his car.
On Wednesday it was Foster, out on a run near his apartment, carefully looking both ways before venturing onto Westcott toward Memorial Park.
“This is the only entrance that is somewhat safe, but yeah, it could be better,” he said.
A $200 million-plus plan to improve the park is aimed at making it a signature destination for all Houstonians. With that success, though, will come the same challenges anything popular in Houston faces: How will people get there,
where will they park and what can be done to give them an option other than driving?
A variety of projects are planned or proposed to offer safer or additional options, including new bike paths, wider sidewalks, even a possible Metropolitan Transit Authority hub to rapid buses. All of the ideas, however, are years away and still face some public scrutiny that could alter the plans.
Efforts to create or expand trails follow what has been the largest park investment in a generation — a $70 million land bridge that creates a hillside through which Memorial Drive passes, connecting the park’s north and south sides.