After expanding its light rail system until it was the largest system in the United States, Dallas Area Rapid Transit still finds itself struggling to attract cities to join the agency, even as rival agencies are emerging as competitors.
"Now that Dallas Area Rapid Transit has built the nation’s longest light-rail network, its officials have their sights set on a goal that has eluded them for 31 years: enticing new cities to join the agency," report Brandon Formby and Ray Leszcynski.
The objective of adding new agencies has taken on new urgency in recent years as once-rural agencies now offer viable public transit, positioning themselves as DART competitors.
As for why that's a problem: "Area officials fear that if suburbs just outside the current service area continue to eschew DART, regional public transit will become a jumbled patchwork instead of a seamless system. And that, they surmise, could suppress transit usage from North Texans who don’t have the patience for a complicated transit structure."
Causing some of the resistance on the part of potential member cities is the one-cent sales tax that funds DART, according to the article (a similar one-cent sales tax in Houston was recently lauded as a potential model for other cities.)
FULL STORY: As DART struggles to lure new members, other agencies emerge
Texas State Bills to Defund Dallas Transit Die
DART would have seen a 30% service cut, $230M annual losses had the bills survived.
DARTSpace Platform Streamlines Dallas TOD Application Process
The Dallas transit agency hopes a shorter permitting timeline will boost transit-oriented development around rail stations.
Texas State Bills Could Kill Transit Funding in Dallas, Austin
State lawmakers could pull funding from the state’s largest transit agency and the ambitious Project Connect, a voter-approved transit project in Austin.
Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.
Adaptive Reuse Will Create Housing in a Suburban Texas Strip Mall
A developer is reimagining a strip mall property as a mixed-use complex with housing and retail.
Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work
Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.
In U.S., Urban Gondolas Face Uphill Battle
Cities in Latin America and Europe have embraced aerial transitways — AKA gondolas — as sustainable, convenient urban transport, especially in tricky geographies. American cities have yet to catch up.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont