rolling out

Texas ride-hailing app grows Houston fleet with EV additions

The first Alto EVs have hit the road in Houston. Photo via Alto

Your next Alto ride might be electric. The Dallas-based car service has rolled out electric vehicles in Houston.

Alto, founded in Dallas in 2018 and launched in Houston in 2020, elevates ridesharing with its own fleet of company-owned, clearly branded SUVs driven by its staff of drivers. The company previously announced its plans to evolve its fleet into being completely electric, and the first EVs have hit the road, according to a company email.

"Our EV additions to the Houston fleet mark an important moment in our commitment to significantly reduce Alto's environmental impact," reads the email sent on September 5.

The new cars offer similar features to its existing fleet, including legroom, phone chargers, water bottles for riders, and more. Plus, the new cars — Kia EV9 — boast a quieter ride.

Alto has consistently grown in its Texas markets — which include Houston and Dallas — over the years, including expanding into Houston's suburbs.

Will Coleman, CEO of Alto, previously wrote in a guest column for InnovationMap that his priorities for starting the company included safety — but also sustainability. For years, Alto has been expressing interest in introducing EVs, with plans of having a completely electric fleet.

"This EV vision is one example of how a rideshare company can build a better and more accountable industry, and these steps also give Houstonians a more responsible and sustainable transportation solution," Coleman writes.

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A View From HETI

Houston U.S. representatives and others from Texas are pushing the Trump administration to reinstate a portion of the $7 billion Biden-era Solar for All program, which aimed to help low-income families reduce their energy costs.. Photo via Pixabay

Eight Democratic members of the U.S. House from Texas, including two from Houston, are calling on the Trump administration to restore a nearly $250 million solar energy grant for Texas that’s being slashed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

In a letter to Lee Zeldin, head of the EPA, and Russell Vought, director of the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the House members urged the two officials to reinstate the nearly $250 million grant, which was awarded to Texas under the $7 billion Biden-era Solar for All program. The Texas grant was designed to assist 28,000 low-income households in installing solar panels, aiming to reduce their energy bills.

“This administration has improperly withheld billions in congressionally appropriated funding that was intended to benefit everyday Americans,” the letter stated.

The letter claimed that numerous court rulings have determined the EPA cannot repeal already allocated funding.

“Congress made a commitment to families, small businesses, and communities across this country to lower their utility bills and reduce harmful pollution through investments in clean energy. The Solar for All program was part of that commitment, and the EPA’s actions to rescind this funding effectively undermine that congressional intent,” the House members wrote.

The six House members who signed the letter are:

  • U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia of Houston
  • U.S. Rep. Al Green of Houston
  • U.S. Rep. Greg Casar of Austin
  • U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Dallas
  • U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Austin
  • U.S. Rep. Julie Johnson of Dallas
  • U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey of Fort Worth

The nearly $250 million grant was awarded last year to the Harris County-led Texas Solar for All Coalition.

In a post on the X social media platform, Zeldin said the recently passed “One Big Beautiful Bill” killed the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which would have financed the $7 billion Solar for All program.

“The bottom line is this: EPA no longer has the statutory authority to administer the program or the appropriated funds to keep this boondoggle alive,” Zeldin said.

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