DART sees 5 percent rise in train passengers

By JUSTIN FARMER - WFAA-TV - Wed., June 25, 2008
DALLAS - The rising price of gasoline has more people in the Dallas area relying on mass transit.

That pleases DART but also offers challenges as it tailors routes to riders' needs.

North Texans love their trucks and SUVs but maybe with gas at $4 a gallon, habits are changing.

The number of passengers on DART trains was up 5 percent last month.

The number of passengers on the TRE which runs between Dallas and Fort Worth was up 7 percent.
May represented the busiest month ever for DART trains - so busy that the parking lots in Plano and Garland were often full.

DART says if this happens to you, then drive to the next DART stop.

DART's future was in doubt in the early 1990s but now is being talked about as brighter than ever.

"We have the largest rail system currently under construction in North America," said DART spokesperson, Mark Ball.

"The 28-mile system is seeing condominiums and restaurants and all kinds of development that DART has nothing to do with, adjacent to our rail system. It's exciting thinking about in the very near future, those are the areas we are going to be servicing and those are the people who are going to be riding on DART," he added.
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Man killed by TRE train

Fort Worth Star Telegram - Fri, Jul. 27, 2007
DALLAS -- A 41-year-old man died Friday after he was hit by a Trinity Railway Express train about 3:15 p.m. Friday, officials said.

Witnesses told authorities the man was knocked off a bridge over Inwood Road near Interstate 35E by a westbound train, said Claudia Garibay, a Dallas Area Rapid Transit spokeswoman.

Officials with the Dallas Police Department and the Dallas County medical examiner's office were still at the scene investigating the incident at 5 p.m. No one aboard the train was injured, officials said. The train was under way in about an hour.

Including Friday's death, there have been eight fatalities involving TRE trains since they began operating in 1996. The most recent fatality, before Friday, was in July 2006, Garibay said.

Kidnapping attempted at Richardson DART station

By Scott Farwell - Dallas Morning News - Sunday, June 10, 2007

Dallas Area Rapid Transit Police and the Richardson Police Department are investigating the attempted kidnapping of a woman at the Spring Valley Station of the commuter rail line Sunday afternoon.

A man grabbed a woman by the arm and tried to drag her out of the station about 3 p.m., Richardson Police Sgt. Harry Helliwell said.

A pedestrian started yelling for police, and the kidnapper ran away. The woman was not injured.

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MEETINGS about Transportation and Rail - DFW REGION NCTCOG

Public Meetings of RTC on changes to the TIP (Transportation Improvement Plan) :
Public Meeting - to inform and take comments from the public:
June 6, 2007, 6:30 - 8:00 PM

Meeting Location: Burleson City Hall, 141 West Renfro, Burleson, TX 76028


Public Meeting: - to inform and take comments from the public:
June 7, 2007, 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Meeting Location: NCTCOG Offices, Arlington, TX Transportation Council Room


Public Meeting - to inform and take comments from the public:

June 7, 2007, 6:30 - 8:00 PM

Meeting Location: Christopher A. Parr Library, 6200 Windhaven Parkway, Plano, TX 75093



OTHER MEETINGS OPEN TO PUBLIC:

NCTCOG's RTC deliberates regarding changes to the TIP!

The public is encouraged to sit in and listen to the proceedings at the next RTC meeting.

PLACE: NCTCOG Regional Transportation Council Room, Arlington

DATE: June 14, 2007, 1:30 - 4:00 PM


Water Resources Council:

DATE: June 14, 2007, 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Meeting Location: NCTCOG Offices Arlington, William J. Pitstick Executive Board Room



Tower 55 Technical Advisory Group Meeting:

DATE: June 15, 2007, 1:30 - 3:00 PM

Meeting Location: NCTCOG Offices Regional Forum Room, Arlington


Outer Loop/Rail Bypass Meeting:
DATE: June 15, 2007,1:30 - 3:30 PM

Meeting Location: NCTCOG Offices - Arlington, Pecan Conference Room


Outer Loop/Rail Bypass:
DATE: June 20, 2007, 1:00 - 3:00 PM

Meeting Location: NCTCOG Offices - Arlington, Pecan Conference Room




NCTCOG Executive Board Meeting: June 28, 2007, 7:00 AM - 4:30 PM

Meeting Location: NCTCOG Offices - Arlington, William J. Pitstick Executive Board Room

The NCTCOG Offices are located at 616 Six Flags Drive, Arlington, TX 76005

DART Rail to be expanded

New funding released by the United States Federal Transportation Administration will allow the doubling in size of the network by 2013, including a 34km (21 mile) Green Line with 24 stations. It will serve regional destinations including Deep Ellum, Baylor University Medical Center, Fair Park, Victory Park and Dallas Market Center. A second branch will extend from the Green Line to Carrollton, to become the Orange Line. This line will also serve Dallas Fort Worth International Airport by 2013.

Design and planning consultation for the Green and Orange lines is being carried out by Sasaki Associates of Boston and San Francisco. The company has been involved in several high profile projects in the Dallas area including the Addison Circle Park which is served by light rail.

Services on the existing network will go on from Garland to Rowlett in 2012, and the benefit of the total programme is expected to be an additional 60,000 passenger trips each weekday, doubling the current ridership.

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