TRANSPORTATION City Council sees examples of DART bus network redesign
DARTZOOMPROTOTYPES Dallas Area Rapid Transit is weighing design concepts for its bus network overhaul. The transit agency expects the nal result to be a mix of both options. Here is how a potential redesign could look in Richardson.
COVERAGE CONCEPT
BY OLIVIA LUECKEMEYER
Richardson City Council got its rst look May 4 at the proto- types for a bus network redesign coming in 2022. The next phase of DARTzoom will reconstruct Dallas Area Rapid Transit’s entire 13-city bus network, Mark Nelson, director of transportation for the city of Richardson, said to council May 4. To oversee the project, DART hired public transit consulting rm Jarrett Walker + Associates, which recently headed up Hous- ton’s bus network redesign. DART’s plan would be budget neutral because it does not include any service additions, Nelson said. The transit agency is currently weighing two approaches for the redesign, Nelson said. The rst would augment the system based on ridership. The second would focus on increasing coverage. About 55% of DART’s bus service is focused on routes with high ridership, while the rest is used to provide coverage, Nelson said. If the transit agency were to focus its redesign around ridership, that share would shift to 85% ridership and 15% coverage. The ridership approach would direct a majority of resources toward high-density corridors, Nelson said. In Richardson, those may include Coit Road, Plano Road, Jupiter Road, East Arapaho Road and routes that service The University of Texas at Dallas. Areas that could see a decrease or loss of service include West Arapaho Road and West Belt Line Road. The alternative, which would prioritize coverage over ridership, would provide less frequent bus service to a larger geographic area, Nelson said. Under that plan, 60% of resources would be directed toward coverage, and 40% would be used for ridership. Council Member Ken Hutchenrider said he was concerned by the loss of service presented in the coverage map example. Member cities in DART’s network contribute 1% of sales tax to fund agency operations. Hutchenrider said he wondered whether residents would still get their money’s worth with fewer routes. “If we do have less coverage at the end of this and we are still being charged the full penny, how is that [a] win for our commu- nity and for our citizens?” he asked. Map examples presented May 4 show the extremes of both concepts, Nelson said. The transit agency expects the nal result to be a compromise between ridership and coverage. Much of the original timeline for the planning and implemen- tation of the project has been delayed due to COVID-19, Nelson said. Service changes are expected to roll out in May 2022.
PGBT TOLL
RENNER RD.
PALISADES CREEK DR.
RICHARDSON
GLENVILLE DR.
SYNERGY PARK BLVD.
CAMPBELL RD.
Key: Weekday midday frequencies Up to 15 minutes
UT DALLAS
COLLINS BLVD.
16-20 minutes 21-30 minutes 31-45 minutes 46-60 minutes Certain times
ARAPAHO RD.
75
BELT LINE RD.
SPRING VALLEY RD.
BUCKINGHAM RD.
MAP NOT TO SCALE N
WALNUT ST.
RIDERSHIPCONCEPT
PGBT TOLL
RENNER RD.
PALISADES CREEK DR.
RICHARDSON
SYNERGY PARK BLVD.
CAMPBELL RD.
Key: Weekday midday frequencies Up to 15 minutes 16-20 minutes
UT DALLAS
COLLINS BLVD.
ARAPAHO RD.
Certain times 21-30 minutes 31-45 minutes
75
BELT LINE RD.
SPRING VALLEY RD.
MAP NOT TO SCALE N
WALNUT ST.
SOURCE: CITY OF RICHARDSON COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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RICHARDSON EDITION • MAY 2020
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