Transit in the News

This is an ongoing series that will keep you informed about the goings-on in the transit industry. Hopefully, it will provide little perspective on the larger environment in which DART operates.

A hoped-for connection at the world’s fourth-busiest airport will now become reality; the Big Easy wants its own Mockingbird Station (okay, so not exactly); and cities throughout the land look to go green, with transit – and the Federal Transit Administration – leading the way.

Jump into this week’s transit news:

An A-list connection at Terminal B

Good news for North Texas commuter rail riders and travelers: DART’s in-the-works Silver Line and Trinity Metro’s TEXRail will now officially be travel buddies at DFW Airport. The two regional rail lines will first meet at DFW North Station, located on the Cotton Belt corridor just north of the airport. DART's Silver Line also will share DFW Airport Terminal B Station with TEXRail.

DART's Board of Directors recently approved the reimbursement of project costs incurred by Trinity Metro in the construction of approximately 2-miles of rail and platform facilities linking the Cotton Belt line to the DFW Airport Terminal B passenger rail platform.

CultureMap Dallas elaborates:

"The Silver Line can't connect directly to DART's current rail network because they use two different kinds of systems. DART uses electric-powered light rail vehicles that get their power from overhead electrical cables. The Silver Line will be a diesel multiple unit, similar to TEXRail, with electrical engines that are powered by diesel, and therefore have no overhead lines."

The Silver Line is scheduled to start service in 2023.

TOD, creole-style and otherwise

New Orleans has many fabled districts – but now the Crescent City wants more transit-oriented neighborhoods. Mass Transit Magazine reports:

“Having a mix of residential, commercial and civic buildings near a bus or streetcar line would likely prompt more residents to use it, which would curb traffic and carbon emissions in the city,” said Joanna Farley, a senior city planner. “And businesses built near the transit lines might more easily find steady customers in the residents who live in nearby.”

In related news, the FTA is making $10 million available for transit-oriented development. Metro Magazine notes that the funding is intended to lessen our nations’ carbon footprint:

“[The] FTA will prioritize projects that will help improve air quality in non-attainment and maintenance areas for certain criteria pollutants under the National Ambient Air Quality Standards and promote equitable delivery of benefits and services to underserved communities.”

By way of a little back-reading, this article (from last September) makes it clear that “green initiatives” are afoot in several large North American cities – including Los Angeles, Seattle and Vancouver. In a nutshell:

The look and feel of these urban areas is set to change.

Electrifying news

Elsewhere in the transit world: San Antonio, Toronto and Rochester, Minn., are adding electric buses to their fleets. San Antonio’s VIA Metropolitan Transit even tied its announcement to Earth Day, which was Thursday. 

Transit in the News

This is an ongoing series that will keep you informed about the goings-on in the transit industry. Hopefully, it will provide little perspective on the larger environment in which DART operates.

A hoped-for connection at the world’s fourth-busiest airport will now become reality; the Big Easy wants its own Mockingbird Station (okay, so not exactly); and cities throughout the land look to go green, with transit – and the Federal Transit Administration – leading the way.

Jump into this week’s transit news:

An A-list connection at Terminal B

Good news for North Texas commuter rail riders and travelers: DART’s in-the-works Silver Line and Trinity Metro’s TEXRail will now officially be travel buddies at DFW Airport. The two regional rail lines will first meet at DFW North Station, located on the Cotton Belt corridor just north of the airport. DART's Silver Line also will share DFW Airport Terminal B Station with TEXRail.

DART's Board of Directors recently approved the reimbursement of project costs incurred by Trinity Metro in the construction of approximately 2-miles of rail and platform facilities linking the Cotton Belt line to the DFW Airport Terminal B passenger rail platform.

CultureMap Dallas elaborates:

"The Silver Line can't connect directly to DART's current rail network because they use two different kinds of systems. DART uses electric-powered light rail vehicles that get their power from overhead electrical cables. The Silver Line will be a diesel multiple unit, similar to TEXRail, with electrical engines that are powered by diesel, and therefore have no overhead lines."

The Silver Line is scheduled to start service in 2023.

TOD, creole-style and otherwise

New Orleans has many fabled districts – but now the Crescent City wants more transit-oriented neighborhoods. Mass Transit Magazine reports:

“Having a mix of residential, commercial and civic buildings near a bus or streetcar line would likely prompt more residents to use it, which would curb traffic and carbon emissions in the city,” said Joanna Farley, a senior city planner. “And businesses built near the transit lines might more easily find steady customers in the residents who live in nearby.”

In related news, the FTA is making $10 million available for transit-oriented development. Metro Magazine notes that the funding is intended to lessen our nations’ carbon footprint:

“[The] FTA will prioritize projects that will help improve air quality in non-attainment and maintenance areas for certain criteria pollutants under the National Ambient Air Quality Standards and promote equitable delivery of benefits and services to underserved communities.”

By way of a little back-reading, this article (from last September) makes it clear that “green initiatives” are afoot in several large North American cities – including Los Angeles, Seattle and Vancouver. In a nutshell:

The look and feel of these urban areas is set to change.

Electrifying news

Elsewhere in the transit world: San Antonio, Toronto and Rochester, Minn., are adding electric buses to their fleets. San Antonio’s VIA Metropolitan Transit even tied its announcement to Earth Day, which was Thursday. 

Transit in the News

This is an ongoing series that will keep you informed about the goings-on in the transit industry. Hopefully, it will provide little perspective on the larger environment in which DART operates.

A hoped-for connection at the world’s fourth-busiest airport will now become reality; the Big Easy wants its own Mockingbird Station (okay, so not exactly); and cities throughout the land look to go green, with transit – and the Federal Transit Administration – leading the way.

Jump into this week’s transit news:

An A-list connection at Terminal B

Good news for North Texas commuter rail riders and travelers: DART’s in-the-works Silver Line and Trinity Metro’s TEXRail will now officially be travel buddies at DFW Airport. The two regional rail lines will first meet at DFW North Station, located on the Cotton Belt corridor just north of the airport. DART's Silver Line also will share DFW Airport Terminal B Station with TEXRail.

DART's Board of Directors recently approved the reimbursement of project costs incurred by Trinity Metro in the construction of approximately 2-miles of rail and platform facilities linking the Cotton Belt line to the DFW Airport Terminal B passenger rail platform.

CultureMap Dallas elaborates:

"The Silver Line can't connect directly to DART's current rail network because they use two different kinds of systems. DART uses electric-powered light rail vehicles that get their power from overhead electrical cables. The Silver Line will be a diesel multiple unit, similar to TEXRail, with electrical engines that are powered by diesel, and therefore have no overhead lines."

The Silver Line is scheduled to start service in 2023.

TOD, creole-style and otherwise

New Orleans has many fabled districts – but now the Crescent City wants more transit-oriented neighborhoods. Mass Transit Magazine reports:

“Having a mix of residential, commercial and civic buildings near a bus or streetcar line would likely prompt more residents to use it, which would curb traffic and carbon emissions in the city,” said Joanna Farley, a senior city planner. “And businesses built near the transit lines might more easily find steady customers in the residents who live in nearby.”

In related news, the FTA is making $10 million available for transit-oriented development. Metro Magazine notes that the funding is intended to lessen our nations’ carbon footprint:

“[The] FTA will prioritize projects that will help improve air quality in non-attainment and maintenance areas for certain criteria pollutants under the National Ambient Air Quality Standards and promote equitable delivery of benefits and services to underserved communities.”

By way of a little back-reading, this article (from last September) makes it clear that “green initiatives” are afoot in several large North American cities – including Los Angeles, Seattle and Vancouver. In a nutshell:

The look and feel of these urban areas is set to change.

Electrifying news

Elsewhere in the transit world: San Antonio, Toronto and Rochester, Minn., are adding electric buses to their fleets. San Antonio’s VIA Metropolitan Transit even tied its announcement to Earth Day, which was Thursday.