Severe weather over the Memorial Day weekend caused widespread traffic signal outages across Houston, Texas, leaving commuters frustrated by prolonged gridlock and dangerous road conditions at busy intersections as of May 28, 2026.
While standard repairs by the City of Houston typically conclude within six hours, officials reported that extensive storm damage and a massive surge in service requests delayed restoration efforts.
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Local regulations require drivers to treat dark or flashing signals as a four-way stop, but the high volume of vehicles has led to significant gridlock, according to a report by KTRK.
Commuters expressed safety concerns regarding the delayed responses, noting that high-traffic areas remained unprotected for days after the initial weather event.
"It's a lot of traffic here, so you can catch a lot of accidents," said driver Kevin Mitchell.
The intersection near Weslayan Street and the Southwest Freeway where Mitchell traveled was eventually repaired on Tuesday night.
"You're worried someone's going to get hit," said driver Michelle Bunch.
Bunch stated that she placed multiple calls to the city 311 service line before emergency crews fixed the signals at that specific crossing.
"You're going to hit them, or they're going to hit you," Bunch said.
In the Midtown neighborhood, several intersections lacked operational lights days after the storm passed.
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"We need a light because this is an exit right here coming from 59," said Jessica Trent, who works near Elgin Street and Brazos Street.
Trent noted that the traffic signals at the intersection had been completely non-functional since Sunday night.
"So many people are used to flying through this light because it's normally green," Trent said.
The City's Public Works Department stated that repair timelines depend on damage complexity, replacement part availability, weather conditions, utility coordination, and total request volume.
Temporary A-frame stop signs were deployed at select locations, though residents reported that weather and motorists minimized their effectiveness.
"They're already on the ground," Trent said. According to Trent, the temporary signs failed to slow down oncoming vehicles.
"People flying by them, the wind is blowing them over. People flying past them.
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Hitting them. They're no help," Trent said.
