Is DART a thing or not? (Dallas, Paris: 2013, how much, home)

[dallasgoldrush]

Originally Posted by txjl123

Not.

2016 DART ridership was 29.8M ( https://www.dart.org/newsroom/dartrailfacts.asp ); DFW population is 7m. On average, a person only rides 4 times in a whole year. In comparison, 2016 NYC subway system ridership total was 1.8 billion.

Originally Posted by tcualum

That's pretty misleading. DART doesn't serve all of DFW.

Correct, DART does not serve all of DFW.

It's also misleading because no one suggested DART is comparable to the New York subway system anyway, nor has anyone suggested DART is likely to ever get there.

I think the questions on this thread have been more so centered around whether DART is a viable alternative to auto transport. In my opinion it is on occasion; if a few key weaknesses were addressed, it would become a viable alternative for an even greater number of scenarios.

[DTXman34]

Originally Posted by dallasgoldrush

Correct, DART does not serve all of DFW.

It's also misleading because no one suggested DART is comparable to the New York subway system anyway, nor has anyone suggested DART is likely to ever get there.

I think the questions on this thread have been more so centered around whether DART is a viable alternative to auto transport. In my opinion it is on occasion; if a few key weaknesses were addressed, it would become a viable alternative for an even greater number of scenarios.

Exactly. It stands for "Dallas Area Rapid Transit." The Dallas area is only one part of DFW and I say that as a proud Dallas city citizen.

[Prumio]

We use DART from time to time. The biggest problem (IMO) is the paucity of cross-town service. For me to get 2 miles east or west of where I live, I have to ride all the way downtown (~8 miles) and back out again. Generally not worth the time/trouble.

[dallasgoldrush]

Originally Posted by Prumio

We use DART from time to time. The biggest problem (IMO) is the paucity of cross-town service. For me to get 2 miles east or west of where I live, I have to ride all the way downtown (~8 miles) and back out again. Generally not worth the time/trouble.

Right, which is exactly why I'm such a strong supporter of the Cotton Belt Line (to run east to west). It'll at least help some of the residents up north get from point A to point B without diverting through downtown. Can't wait for it to get up and going.

[HP48G]

DART covers a large area but doesn't serve most in a way thats convenient for many people. I have high hopes the cotton belt segment between the red line and Addison will be very popular.

[jgn2013]

DART (for most people) works best when using it for commuting to work and for special occasions like sporting events, concerts and the State Fair. Dallas wasn't planned simultaneously with DART, so it'll never be the cure-all solution. Our city was built-out largely with roads/highways in mind and it shows.

I do think there's a stigma associated with riding the bus. Lots of well-to-do professionals take the train, but not many people seem willing to ride the bus unless they have no other choice. Of course as someone that grew up riding the bus in high school/college, I can understand why. The bus drivers can be insufferable. I remember plenty of instances where the drivers would show up late and then have an attitude when people wanted to know what took so long. During rush hour, sometimes the bus simply wouldn't show up at say 5:30 pm and then everyone would wait for that 6:00 pm bus. Instead of being 3/4 full, the bus was over capacity because of all the passengers standing around. I've seen bus drivers stop in the middle of a route on a busy street, go inside 7-11 and buy a slurpee and a bag of chips. Most memorable were the drivers that show up at the train station (the beginning for many routes) early, pull up to the bus stop but keep the bus closed for 20+ minutes when it's 100+ degrees outside. They'd literally just sit there playing on their phones and then wait until they have 60 seconds before departure to open the doors. And of course, they'd be in a huffy mood demanding that all the passengers "hurry" and get on the bus.

[Prumio]

Originally Posted by dallasgoldrush

Right, which is exactly why I'm such a strong supporter of the Cotton Belt Line (to run east to west). It'll at least help some of the residents up north get from point A to point B without diverting through downtown. Can't wait for it to get up and going.

Agree completely. But in the meantime, why no buses on at least a few East/West thoroughfares? Between I-35 & Central, almost nothing from Spring Valley down to NW Hwy. And that Spring Valley route doesn't cover the whole distance. But I think much of this is related to the history of the Dallas bus system: When I first moved here many moons ago & began contemplating its inutility, I came to the conclusion that it was designed to get day-workers from downtown/South Dallas to the posher areas of town. Hence, a bus than ran up Devonshire Dr (the 183, I think, before it was rerouted as more of a commuter bus).

[pharpe]

Originally Posted by dallasgoldrush

I wouldn't mind converting to the app, but I don't think it gets the greatest reviews. Have you used it? If so, what do you think of it?

I commute on the DART and use the app everyday. It does works really well. It even tells you when the next trains are coming.

Originally Posted by jdallas

I've used it and it works great with the exception of Cityplace as a starting point (if you forget to activate it above ground).

You can also use it underground as long as you already have the ticket purchased. It will let you activate a ticket you already have it just won't let you purchase new ones until you get back to cell service. It helps to if you put your phone into Airplane mode so you don't have to wait for it to try to attempt to connect.

Originally Posted by jdallas

...A person can purchase a pass and hold off on activating it until they see a fare enforcer board the train...

When you first activate the ticket it flashes "Recently Activated" for a minute. Fare enforcement can easily see if you have just activated a ticket. The policy is you must activate before you board the train so if you check you after you have been on the train for a few minutes they will know you just activated it and be in violation.

[happycrow]

Originally Posted by dallasgoldrush

I'm not sure what you mean by this. Do you mean remove rail lines where they currently exist and replace them with more / densely packed rail lines? I don't think it'd be efficient to take out current lines that are already working. I really do think that adding a legitimate Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system to adequately supplement the current rail lines would accomplish the kind of overall system efficiency I believe you're referring to. Cleveland's bus system is the best example of what I'm talking about:

BRT in Cleveland: No mistake by the lake

But correct me if I misunderstood your post.

The antecedent wasn't the rails but all of DFW or covered areas. DART is an afterthought, but to work as a truly effective system the rail lines would need to go where middle and working-class people actually live. That's a LOT of torn-up real-estate.

[oldoak2000]

The DART rail to Denton is nearly worthless; MIGHT have been usable if you could get to DFW airport but I think you can WALK there faster than trying to do this.
Denton (and lake-cities) traffic USED to be great PRIOR to this abomination - now everything comes to a standstill every 15 min as the EMPTY rail-cars whiz by . . .