Traffic anchor Anavid Reyes joined the KPRC 2 News Today team in April.
She is working alongside Owen Conflenti, Britta Merwin, Amy Davis, and Haley Hernandez during the morning newscast.
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Reyes comes to KPRC 2 from Austin where she was a traffic anchor at KVUE. Her first television job after graduating from The University of Texas at San Antonio was in Abilene.
Reyes is the first in her family to graduate from a university. She moved to Houston from Monterrey, Mexico when she was a child.
Here are 9 things to know about her:
1. How did you end up getting interested in traffic?
I started doing traffic in Austin, Texas, and was actually KVUE’s first traffic anchor.
The department was new, so I learned everything from the ground up.
There are a lot of different moving parts to be successful in traffic: you have to develop good contacts with the big traffic entities around town, have good sense of direction, and translating that on the green screen. Speaking of the green screen, that’s a whole different thing on its own. It’s already difficult enough to work with nothing behind you, but a green wall. Then adding movement and coordination with your graphics (that you create on a system yourself). Sheesh!
I will say, all of this is what makes this job exciting, no day is the same and the evolution of how we get around town is absolutely fascinating which is what I find most interesting.
2. What do you like to do outside the office?
What makes me the happiest is spending time outdoors with my dogs.
I love going on long hikes with them and I'm looking forward to running around Memorial Park again.
And of course, to balance all of this off ... I love trying new restaurants and food trucks and hitting up the regulars like: Jinya, Gloria's, Pondicheri, Kata Robata...oh I could go on and on!
3. Tell us about What’s Driving Houston, how are you hoping to make this a great destination for readers?
I hope to be an honest and reliable source for traffic information our viewers can trust.
The goal is to make this topic more of a conversation and open dialogue, so my goal is to really listen to our viewers’ concerns and provide them with answers.
4. Does Houston traffic make you crazy, like the rest of us?
No, I’m used to it.
Actually, working the early morning shift helps me avoid the traffic jams during peak hours, so I really can’t complain.
5. Tell us about your family.
My mom and dad were both born in Mexico and have been married for nearly 30 years.
I have 2 younger brothers, Luis, 21 and Anthony, 14.
Luis is an amazing athlete, he plays football for Prairie View A&M University.
Anthony is a little genius! He loves technology, building computers from scratch and is currently obsessed with creating youtube videos, mostly about Fortnite.
6. We also hear you’re an animal lover. Tell us about your animal family.
I AM! All together, my family has five dogs.
Lia, Tony, Lola, Koba and Koko.
Lia and Tony are my parent’s dogs.
Lola is a chihuahua, Koba was rescued from a shelter in Leander, Texas...he's a Collie/Husky mix and Koko is a Yorkshire Terrier and he's actually part of Lia and Tony's litter.
My husband and I don’t have any human babies yet, but we consider these three crazy, beautiful dogs our fur-children.
If I could, I would move out to a ranch and have a bunch of dogs, horses, sheep, giraffes, you name it!
7. What are your memories of living in Monterrey, Mexico?
The city of Monterrey is surrounded by the Sierra Mountain range, it’s absolutely beautiful.
My entire mom's side of the family lives in Monterrey.
So, when we would visit during summer and winter break I got to spend time with my grandmother, all my aunts and uncles. Hanging out with my cousins was a blast, because we were all about the same age. I remember discovering Britney Spears while watching TV with my grandmother in Mexico. LOL.
8. What was Houston like when you lived here as a child?
My go-to spots in Houston when I was a child were The Galleria, Memorial Park and Astroworld.
I remember every summer, my dad would get us season passes to Astroworld and we would spend our summer days riding roller coasters and cooling off at the water park, Water World.
I was really sad to see Astroworld go years ago.
The Galleria looks pretty much the same to me, except the construction around that area now is crazy. Like the addition of the new metal swirl trees that light up beginning Thanksgiving night in the Uptown area.
9. We hear you’re a huge foodie. What’s your go-to taco spot in Houston?
Because I am a foodie, I don't have one single favorite of anything.
But I’ll tell you which places have some of the best tacos I’ve ever had:
- The OG, Taqueria Arandas. Been going here since I was a little girl.
- Los Cucos Mexican Restaurant tacos al carbon.
- Alicia’s Mexican Restaurant in Cypress has some pretty good beef fajita tacos.
Of course, I’m a sucker for food truck tacos: Taqueria Ruby near Jersey Village on Huffmeister are SO GOOD!
Connect with her
Stay in touch with Anavid Reyes by following her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.