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Luxe rideshare service with EV evolution plans expands Houston-area coverage to two suburbs

on a roll

Alto, which plans an imminent evolution into electric vehicles, has expanded its service in the Houston area. Photo courtesy of Alto

Some big news for outside-the-Loop ridesharing users: Luxury rideshare company Alto, which currently operates in Inner Loop and Greater Houston, will expand its current service areas to The Woodlands and Spring.

Woodlands and Spring residents who’ve used Alto in Houston can look forward to the service in December and join a waitlist now. Importantly, new users who register now will receive the first three months of Alto membership completely free. (Be sure to check the site for important details.) Memberships run $12.95 per month, or $119 for annual or family memberships. The company promises unlocked fares that are 30-50 percent lower than usually promoted.

Founded in 2018 and launched in Houston in 2020, Alto elevates basic ridesharing with a fleet of company-owned, clearly branded, 5-star crash rated luxury SUVs. For safety, cloud-based cameras capture both interior and exterior videos of the ride. The company has previously announced its plans to evolve its fleet into being completely electric.

Choosy customers can select their preferred ride “vibe” — meaning an upbeat or chill music choice and even level of conversation with the driver — via the app. Vehicles are appointed with chargers, drinks, and even upscale scents (no smelly trips here).

In effort to create a more consistent customer-service based experience, Alto drivers aren’t contractors or side-hustlers but rather employees who receive benefits. A major benefit: Alto doesn’t put time restrictions on departures, meaning users who are running late don’t have to frantically message the driver.

As those who’ve used Alto are familiar, Alto drivers are professional and personable (without being overbearing) and tend to drive much slower and conservatively — something that should be considered for those behind schedule. Importantly, Alto builds 10 to 15-minute pick up windows to adjust for demand and cleaning between rides.

As for the new area users: consider this a chance to cruise Market Street in The Woodlands or Old Town Spring in regal rideshare style.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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Texas gets one step closer to CCUS permitting authority

The View From HETI

This month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced its proposed approval of Texas request for permitting authority under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) for Class VI underground injection wells for carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) in the state. The State of Texas already has permitting authority for Class I-V injection wells. Granting authority for Class VI wells recognizes that Texas is well positioned to protect its underground sources of drinking water while also advancing economic opportunity and energy security.

“In the Safe Drinking Water Act, Congress laid out a clear vision for delegating decision-making from EPA to states that have local expertise and understand their water resources, geology, communities, and opportunities for economic growth,” said EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin in a news release. “EPA is taking a key step to support cooperative federalism by proposing to approve Texas to permit Class VI wells in the state.”

The Greater Houston Partnership’s Houston Energy Transition Initiative (HETI) has supported efforts to bring CCUS to a broader commercial scale since the initiative’s inception. Earlier this year, HETI commissioned a “study of studies” by Texas A&M University’s Energy Institute and Mary K. O’Connor Process Safety Center on the operational history and academic literature of CCUS safety in the United States. The report revealed that with state and federal regulations as well as technical and engineering technologies available today, CCUS is safe and presents a very low risk of impacts to human life. This is useful research for stakeholders interested in learning more about CCUS.

“The U.S. EPA’s proposal to approve Texas’ application for Class VI well permitting authority is yet another example of Texas’ continued leadership in meeting the dual challenge of producing more energy with less emissions,” said Jane Stricker, Senior Vice President of Energy at the Greater Houston Partnership and Executive Director of the Houston Energy Transition Initiative. “We applaud the U.S. EPA and Texas Railroad Commission for their collaborative efforts to ensure the supply of safe, affordable and reliable energy, and we call on all stakeholders to voice their support for the application during the public comment period.”

The U.S. EPA has announced a public comment period that will include a virtual public hearing on July 24, 2025 from 5-8 pm and conclude on July 31, 2025.

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This article originally ran on the Greater Houston Partnership's Houston Energy Transition Initiative blog. HETI exists to support Houston's future as an energy leader. For more information about the Houston Energy Transition Initiative, EnergyCapitalHTX's presenting sponsor, visit htxenergytransition.org.

Houston team’s discovery brings solid-state batteries closer to EV use

a better battery

A team of researchers from the University of Houston, Rice University and Brown University has uncovered new findings that could extend battery life and potentially change the electric vehicle landscape.

The team, led by Yan Yao, the Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UH, recently published its findings in the journal Nature Communications.

The work deployed a powerful, high-resolution imaging technique known as operando scanning electron microscopy to better understand why solid-state batteries break down and what could be done to slow the process.

“This research solves a long-standing mystery about why solid-state batteries sometimes fail,” Yao, corresponding author of the study, said in a news release. “This discovery allows solid-state batteries to operate under lower pressure, which can reduce the need for bulky external casing and improve overall safety.”

A solid-state battery replaces liquid electrolytes found in conventional lithium-ion cells with a solid separator, according to Car and Driver. They also boast faster recharging capabilities, better safety and higher energy density.

However, when it comes to EVs, solid-state batteries are not ideal since they require high external stack pressure to stay intact while operating.

Yao’s team learned that tiny empty spaces, or voids, form within the solid-state batteries and merge into a large gap, which causes them to fail. The team found that adding small amounts of alloying elements, like magnesium, can help close the voids and help the battery continue to function. The team captured it in real-time with high-resolution videos that showed what happens inside a battery while it’s working under a scanning electron microscope.

“By carefully adjusting the battery’s chemistry, we can significantly lower the pressure needed to keep it stable,” Lihong Zhao, the first author of this work, a former postdoctoral researcher in Yao’s lab and now an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at UH, said in the release. “This breakthrough brings solid-state batteries much closer to being ready for real-world EV applications.”

The team says it plans to build on the alloy concept and explore other metals that could improve battery performance in the future.

“It’s about making future energy storage more reliable for everyone,” Zhao added.

The research was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Battery 500 Consortium under the Vehicle Technologies Program. Other contributors were Min Feng from Brown; Chaoshan Wu, Liqun Guo, Zhaoyang Chen, Samprash Risal and Zheng Fan from UH; and Qing Ai and Jun Lou from Rice.

Texas drivers continue to pump the brakes on EVs, shows new report

EV adoption

Even though Texas is home to Tesla, a major manufacturer of electric vehicles, motorists in the Lone Star State aren’t in the fast lane when it comes to getting behind the wheel of an EV.

U.S. Department of Energy data compiled by Visual Capitalist shows Texas has 689.9 EV registrations per 100,000 people, putting it in 20th place for EV adoption among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. A report released in 2023 by the University of Houston and Texas Southern University found that a little over 5 percent of Texans drove EVs.

California leads all states for EV adoption, with 3,025.6 registrations per 100,000 people, according to Visual Capitalist. In second place is Washington, with an EV adoption rate of 1,805.4 per 100,000.

A recent survey by AAA revealed lingering reluctance among Americans to drive all-electric vehicles.

In the survey, just 16 percent of U.S. adults reported being “very likely” or “likely” to buy an all-electric vehicle as their next car. That’s the lowest level of interest in EVs recorded by AAA since 1999. The share of consumers indicating they’d be “very unlikely” or “unlikely” to buy an EV rose to 63 percent, the highest level since 2022.

Factors cited by EV critics included:

  • High cost to repair batteries (62 percent).
  • High purchase price (59 percent).
  • Ineffective transportation for long-distance travel (57 percent).
  • Lack of convenient public charging stations (56 percent).
  • Fear of battery running out of power while driving (55 percent).

“Since AAA began tracking consumer interest in fully electric vehicles, we’ve observed fluctuations in enthusiasm,” said Doug Shupe, corporate communications manager for AAA Texas. “While automakers continue investing in electrification and expanding EV offerings, many drivers still express hesitation — often tied to concerns about cost, range, and charging infrastructure.”

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