Texas’ population has been rapidly increasing in the past eight years. More people living in the metropolitan areas comes with many problems in Texas’ infrastructure that need to be addressed before it is too late. These areas of improvement can be found in water, energy and the city structure. In order to account for the population surge, some dramatic changes must be made.

Water Shortage

Due to Texas’ affordable living and diverse economy, the population has increased to a whopping 28 million this year and with international and domestic immigration (222,000) outnumbering Texas’ natural growth (210,000) between 2010 and 2016, changes need to be made now more than ever. (1) The larger cities are seeing a majority of this immigration and to account for this, water conservation efforts should be put into place. Texas is mostly arid desert and must either import its water or reuse waste water by heavily filtering it. In Austin, the water supply comes from Lake Travis and Lake Buchanan but even these lakes are being affected greatly, losing 40,000 acre-feet each week. (2) More research must be done to find a solution to the water shortage in Texas but that doesn’t mean the citizens of Texas cannot do anything now. By conserving water and putting conservation plans into place, Texas can give researchers more time. It doesn’t seem to be an issue in the present moment and thus conservation will be precautions for the future.

Clean Energy

Unfortunately, water is not Texas’ only problem. As more people fill the cities, the demand for energy increases. Texas’ economy is largely due to the oil industry with the

Houston ship channel acting as a central hub. When thinking about Texas’ future, it must be a green one. New forms of green energy are already being used yet Texas is still reliant on oil and natural gas. Wind and solar energy are excellent replacements. Many drawbacks of wind energy have to do with upfront investments, aesthetics and noise and the benefits outweigh these greatly. (3) Since much of Texas’ population resides in big cities, there is an abundance of uninhabited land where windmills can be placed. As for solar energy, it is as easy as putting a panel on your roof. A common stigma about these greener energy sources is cost, but the cost of windmills has gone down by over 80% since 19803 and solar panels can save people on average $100 a month on electricity. (4)

Walkability

Another issue with large cities in Texas is walkability. Everything is so spread out making it extremely difficult to navigate the city without a vehicle. This also brings about the problem of traffic. The common solution is building more roads, but this actually creates more traffic and only amplifies the problem. According to the book Walkable City by Jeff Speck, by diversifying city blocks, decreasing not only the amount of driving lanes but the width of them also and making the sidewalks more appealing to pedestrians any city’s downtown can be transformed to a walkable city.

Many zoning codes don’t allow for diverse city blocks. By offering housing at a range of prices to bring in all walks of life as well as adding more parks, convenience stores, groceries and hospitals, people will have less need to drive to get what they need since everything is in walking distance. One-way streets, wide lanes that allow higher speed limits, multiple lane streets and lack of pedestrian crossing areas cause many accidents, injuries or even deaths in high populated cities. Pedestrian safety is a key component of a walkable city as well as the desire to walk. When people can go faster on one-way streets, there is more room for error due to lack of attention on the road. If only one lane going each way was available and the other lanes were transformed to street parking or bike lanes, people would be more inclined to walk since driving then becomes the slower alternative. The street parking also allows for a ‘steel barrier’ so to say, between the cars and the pedestrians making their walk safer.
Finally, beautification of the city will make walks more pleasurable because there is more to look at then just buildings. Things like murals, trees or greenery and creative street lighting will draw people to the beauty of the city and make walking and biking more enjoyable. This also provides jobs for local artists and reduces spending on building more roads that can be put towards redirecting downtowns towards a walkable future.

These topics are only scratching the surface of what Texas could do to improve its cities and plan for the future. More and more people make their way to Texas each year and if actions are taken now, the quality of life of Texas’ civilians will remain just as great as they are today.

 
1. “Texas Has Nation’s Largest Annual State Population Growth.” Census.gov. https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2017/08/texas-population-trends.html (accessed October 20, 2018)
2. “In Austin, Growing Water Needs and Conservation.” Texastribune.org. https://www.texastribune.org/2011/06/22/in-austin-growing-water-needs–and-conservation/ (accessed October 20, 2018)
3. “Wind Energy Pros and Cons.” Energyinformative.org. http://energyinformative.org/wind-energy-pros-and-cons/ (accessed October 20, 2018)
4. “Solar Energy Pros and Cons.” Energyinformative.org. http://energyinformative.org/solar-energy-pros-and-cons/ (accessed October 20, 2018)