DART Plots Love Field Stop

[drumguy8800]

Dallas officials must come up with another $27 million

Anyone have some spare change lying around?

[Mballar]

*************************BREAKING NEWS*****************************
I just saw a report on Cannel 5 News (nbc) that stated that the Dallas County Commissioner's Court just voted to give DART/City of Dallas the remaining 10 million dollars needed to fund the Love Field Terminal/Tunnel. The reporter also stated that DART will now send the Love Field design option to Washington for final approval. I will search for a print version of this news.

This calls for a celebration!!!!!!!!

[gc]

Wooohoooo!

thanks for posting

[pariah]

Awesome!!!!!!

[bloodandpopcorn]

YES!! Great, great, GREAT news! I really think this is crucial to the continued success of DART. Way to go!

[freewaytincan]

I can't believe it! I can't believe it! I can't freakin' believe it!!!

[RobertB]

*************************BREAKING NEWS*****************************
I just saw a report on Cannel 5 News (nbc) that stated that the Dallas County Commissioner's Court just voted to give DART/City of Dallas the remaining 10 million dollars needed to fund the Love Field Terminal/Tunnel. The reporter also stated that DART will now send the Love Field design option to Washington for final approval. I will search for a print version of this news.

This calls for a celebration!!!!!!!!
Happy dance! Happy dance! WOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOO!

How about a toast: :cheers:
(I never thought I'd use that smilie)

[crescentboi]

This is an amazing leap for DART and Dallas....I think it brings the city closer to being a "world-class" city in others eyes.

[Mballar]

I just spoke withn Tony Hartzel who is a writer at the Dallas Morning News, and who normally covers this issue. He said that the Morning News will probably publish an article on this most recent news in Sunday's edition of the paper (10-3-04), if not before then. He also noted that the DART Board still has to vote on whether to send the design option to Washington. He thinks there is no guarantee that DART will do so because, as he suggests, DART is still "unsure" of the City of Dallas' ability to come up with its portion of the matching funds needed (a little less than $10 million). He nonetheless agreed that the County Commissioners' vote on yesterday will go a long way toward achieving that goal.

Forumers, lets keep our fingers crossed. :)

btw, if any of you would like to contact Mr. Hartzel personally about this, his number is (469) 330-5628.

[Man of Leisure]

Great news. Although, I think I'll hold off on popping the bubbley until after everything has been finalized.

[texcolo]

:guns:

KEWL.

[drumguy8800]

btw, if any of you would like to contact Mr. Hartzel personally about this, his number is (469) 330-5628.

Wow. He's the only columnist I actually regularly read.

This is great news! :).. Two Subway Stations!! \m/

(Four if we can get Routh and Knox-Henderson stations!!!)

[RobertB]

Wow. He's the only columnist I actually regularly read.
I hope he's not getting the axe:

Media company will cut 250 jobs
http://www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/business/2004/09/30dailybriefing.html

Media owner Belo Corp. plans to cut 250 jobs, more than half of them at its flagship newspaper, The Dallas Morning News. The company also said an internal investigation into circulation overstatements showed the projected circulation decline at the newspaper would be steeper than previously announced. Belo said the layoff of 3 percent of its work force was prompted by flat revenue since 2001 in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, where it also owns a television station. Dallas-based Belo said The Morning News' circulation would fall 11.9 percent on Sundays and 5.1 percent on other days for the six months ended Sept. 30 compared to a year earlier.

Story also at the DMN, ironically: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/092904dnbusbelo.1fed44da.html

[texman]

DART project at turning point

05:26 PM CDT on Saturday, October 2, 2004


By TONY HARTZEL / The Dallas Morning News



The future of a Dallas Love Field light-rail tunnel is getting clearer, but the toughest decisions and deadlines loom large.

Federal officials, at DART's request, will review two sets of plans for light-rail service to northwest and southeast Dallas County. One option includes a $160 million tunnel to Love Field; the other does not.

DART must make a final decision by Nov. 9, more than two years after debate began. Since 2002, officials with the city of Dallas and Dallas Area Rapid Transit have gone back and forth about the merits – and possible risks to other rail projects – of building a Love Field tunnel.

"I got clear directives from three council people that this tunnel is not to risk the southeast rail line," said DART board member Lynn Flint Shaw of Dallas.

DART officials say they expect federal officials to give both projects recommended ratings. That rating allows the project to compete in Congress for $700 million in federal funding. Without the federal money, the rail projects could be delayed indefinitely.

Although both probably will be recommended, the non-tunnel option is expected to receive a better cost-effectiveness score, with subsidies of between $19 and $21 per rider. The tunnel option would come in at about $23 to $25 per rider. Cost-effectiveness is one of several factors Congress considers as it doles out transit construction money, but some congressional representatives want it to have even greater weight than it has.

That means the DART board still could face a difficult decision Nov. 9 after federal officials announce their scores for the tunnel and non-tunnel plans. Another factor for the DART board at decision time: A tunnel probably will delay rail line openings by five to six months, according to a worst-case scenario presented to transit officials last week.

The debate last week centered on a funding deadline faced by the city of Dallas. The city agreed to pay about half of the tunnel's cost, and most of that money was supposed to come from a $3 surcharge added to each plane ticket at Love Field.

The city submitted the paperwork last October, but the FAA had more questions last month. Dallas supplied the answers and is awaiting a final decision from Washington, which could come as late as Jan. 15.

DART needs that answer by Nov. 9. Without it, the transit agency's decision becomes much easier. Officials say they would have no choice but to abandon the tunnel plans and move forward with an option that would include a street-level rail spur abutting the terminal.

DART board members also want the city to provide firm commitments for the remaining $27 million. The city received commitments for some of that money from Dallas County commissioners, and more could come from a future bond election. A promise to include the needed money in a bond election may not be good enough for some DART board members.

"I want to see us go into Love Field. My concern is that, here we are at the 11th, 11th, 11th hour, and we're still not advancing in the [financial] commitment category," said board vice president Mark Enoch, who represents Farmers Branch and Rowlett.


Building a tunnel later probably would be cost-prohibitive, said Michael Morris, director of transportation for the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

"If you don't do Love Field now, the math will never work out to do Love Field in the future," he said.

• Some weekday evening service is being restored to the Trinity Railway Express: The 8:45 p.m. train from Dallas Union Station now will leave at 9:30 p.m. and arrive at the Fort Worth T&P Station at 10:38 p.m. The 8:45 p.m. train from the T&P Station now will depart at 8:55 p.m. and arrive at Union Station at 10:04. Both trains originally stopped at the CentrePort/DFW Airport Station. Another train will leave Union Station at 10:20 p.m. and arrive at CentrePort Station at 10:49 p.m.


Tony Hartzel can be reached at thartzel@dallasnews.com and at P.O. Box 655237, Dallas, Texas 75265.

[RobertB]

Building a tunnel later probably would be cost-prohibitive, said Michael Morris, director of transportation for the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

"If you don't do Love Field now, the math will never work out to do Love Field in the future," he said.
Why not? This is the sort of statement that Wal-Mart uses to get you to put stuff on lay-a-way. "If I don't buy those dresses now, they won't be there next month!" But next month, there will be different dresses, maybe even better dresses. What's to day that in another few years, technology advances make the tunnel easier to build?

I love subways -- anyone who has seen my obsessive-compulsive downtown subway maps can attest to that! But I don't want DART to go out and spend money just because they have it. If the subway under Love Field can be justified, great. I'd rather it not be an either-or situation. But if it is, I'm with the city council members -- do NOT delay the SE line for the Love Field tunnel.

[freewaytincan]

Why not? This is the sort of statement that Wal-Mart uses to get you to put stuff on lay-a-way. "If I don't buy those dresses now, they won't be there next month!" But next month, there will be different dresses, maybe even better dresses. What's to day that in another few years, technology advances make the tunnel easier to build?

My thoughts exactly! Nevertheless, the sooner the better.




...anyone who has seen my obsessive-compulsive downtown subway maps..l.

That's the main reason I don't make things like that. Too obsessive-compulsive to make it work for the real world.

[bloodandpopcorn]

I think Love Field station must be built... the more interconnected all modes of transportation in our region are, and the more convenient those connections are, the more sucessful we will be at attracting new residents, visitors, business, and growing in intellegent and unilaterally satisfactory ways. The quicker both airports are connected, conveniently, by rail to each other and to the major employment and residential areas of DFW, the better. If it means 6 month or even 1 year delays to SE Dallas, I think it is worth it. Any more than a year delays.... and I agree, maybe other direct-connect options should be researched as the rest of the line is built. But a train station directly into Love Field would be a big boost, I think, to DART, Love Field, and Dallas as a whole.

[noelamador]

DART to Love tunnel gets boost
Dallas has its share of $160 million cost, but will agency share ride?
09:11 PM CST on Wednesday, November 3, 2004
By TONY HARTZEL / The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/110404dnmetlovefield.9f129.html

A proposed $160 million rail tunnel at Dallas Love Field got a political and financial boost Wednesday from the Dallas City Council, forcing what could be a make-or-break decision by the Dallas Area Rapid Transit board of directors next week. City officials, pointing to a letter they received this week from the Federal Aviation Administration, believe they now have all the commitments for the $72.7 million they promised to raise. Now DART also must weigh the risks of pursuing the more costly airport tunnel, which could lower the agency's chances for federal funding.

Critical connection

"It is critical that we make this connection," council member Veletta Forsythe Lill said. "To be a progressive, 21st-century city, we must have rail access to airports." If built, the rail line would connect downtown Dallas and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, with the tunnel serving Love Field in between. But the higher the line's total cost because of the tunnel, the lower its cost-effectiveness. That could lower the project's standing against other cities' rail projects. DART is seeking $700 million in federal funds to build rail lines from Pleasant Grove to northwest Dallas.

Without the tunnel, the rail line has a $19 to $22 subsidy per rider. With the tunnel, the line could have a subsidy of $23 to $26 per rider. Planned rail lines in Charlotte, N.C., and Phoenix reported similar subsidies last year, but those numbers could change noticeably when a new ranking is released in early 2005. Cost-effectiveness "is a factor federal officials seem to want to use to differentiate the projects," said Gary Thomas, DART president and executive director. "Whether they're considered by the FTA [Federal Transit Administration] or not, there are some other benefits." Dallas officials believe federal officials will consider the project favorably because it links the central business district and two airports.

When the DART board meets Tuesday, it most likely will have two sets of rail plans to consider ? one with a Love Field rail tunnel, and the other with rail service running beside the airport. The second option would feature a $70 million, ground-level shuttle train between the terminal and the nearest main line station. Federal Transit Administration officials are considering the two options, and DART officials expect federal officials by Tuesday to give recommended ratings to both. The bureaucratic maze toward the rail tunnel's construction could require Dallas or DART to make a leap of faith. The bulk of Dallas' contribution, $53.3 million, would be raised using a $3 surcharge on every plane ticket at Love Field, a surcharge that the FAA has informally approved.

Formal OK expected

Dallas officials believe the FAA will formally approve the ticket surcharges, but only after DART commits to build the Love Field tunnel. DART officials have said they want assurances that the ticket surcharge revenue will be there before they commit to build the tunnel. "We're kind of in a Catch-22 right now," said council member Sandy Greyson, who has pushed for the project for the two years as chairman of the council's transportation subcommittee. "We want DART to know how very important it is for Dallas and indeed the entire region." In recent months, DART board members also have expressed concerns about the Love Field plan, particularly Dallas' commitments for its share of the funding and whether it would affect other rail plans to Irving, Carrollton, Farmers Branch and Rowlett. Dallas council members believe they resolved those questions Wednesday, but a DART board that includes seven members from the suburbs must approve the project.

"Love Field really is a regional proposition," said longtime board member Ray Noah of Richardson. "I want something we can take to the bank. They need to come up with real dollars." If suburban board members support the Love Field tunnel, they might use the same argument about a regional benefit to push for rail service along another rail line: the hotly debated Cotton Belt line that stretches from Plano and Richardson through Far North Dallas and Carrollton to the north end of D/FW Airport. Dallas has opposed rail service along the Cotton Belt line because of low-ridership projections and fierce neighborhood opposition. Northern suburbs have long pushed for the rail line as a much-needed east-west route. There is a regional benefit to Love Field that overrides some of the costs," Mr. Noah said. "If we're going to do that, we need to use the same analysis on the Cotton Belt."

Council qualms

Even support from the Dallas council came with reservations. Dr. Elba Garcia noted that she and some of her colleagues agreed to delay needed road paving and construction projects to raise the money needed for the rail tunnel. Mayor Laura Miller promised to get those projects at the top of the list for consideration in a possible 2007 bond election. Council members with districts along the rail line to Fair Park and Pleasant Grove noted that the airport tunnel would delay other rail projects by six months. Currently, the rail line to Fair Park would be built by mid-2009. Improved sales tax revenue led the transit agency to move up the projected opening date by 18 months, but the Love Field tunnel would push the date back by six months.

"I'm not saying it's not worth it. I want to get rail to Love Field," council member Maxine Thornton-Reese said. "We need to think about who are catching planes at Love Field and whose citizens are actually supporting DART."

[texman]

Ok, what is this cat and mouse game with the FAA. We wont commit the surcharge until you start building the tunnel. What kind of mentality is that!? Wow, great news otherwise, except I don't like the idea of other rail lines getting delayed by 6 months. If the money would be there already why would there be a delay on anything else? Also, I've never heard about "Dallas has opposed rail service along the Cotton Belt line because of low-ridership projections and fierce neighborhood opposition. " Can someone fill me in?

[RobertB]

Ok, what is this cat and mouse game with the FAA. We wont commit the surcharge until you start building the tunnel. What kind of mentality is that!? Wow, great news otherwise, except I don't like the idea of other rail lines getting delayed by 6 months. If the money would be there already why would there be a delay on anything else? Also, I've never heard about "Dallas has opposed rail service along the Cotton Belt line because of low-ridership projections and fierce neighborhood opposition. " Can someone fill me in?
I'm guessing that the 6-month delay if a Love Field tunnel is being built is due to the fact that there are a small number of companies that do this sort of thing. If it takes 6 months longer to build a tunnel than it does to build a surface line, then the people who know how to build rail lines will be busy in the tunnel, and won't be available for the other parts of the project.

I'm sure that DART and their contractors will schedule for the maximum effective use of resources, but if there are only so many wire-stringing teams, then there will be a delay.

As for the Cotton Belt line's low ridership... couldn't you say the same thing about the Dallas North Tollway extention to what, southern Oklahoma?

[freewaytincan]

As for the Cotton Belt line's low ridership... couldn't you say the same thing about the Dallas North Tollway extention to what, southern Oklahoma?

That crazy Meadows Building! Why would you build something that far north?!

[RobertB]

That crazy Meadows Building! Why would you build something that far north?!
It took a while to get the joke. What year was the Meadows Building built, again?

Something funny-strange (and largely unreleated to the topic): I Googled to figure out where the Meadows Building is, and the first result is dallas-divorce-lawyer.com:


The Dallas Divorce Site is a comprehensive information based site ...
... The Meadows Building is located on the South side of Milton at the Lovers Lane ... point
of origin, go to Mapquest.com and enter 5646 Milton, Dallas, Texas 75206 ...
www.dallas-divorce-lawyer.com/directions.htm - 22k - Cached - Similar pages
Ok, so to get to the divorce lawyer, take DART to... Lovers Lane station. That's just wrong. Wrong wrong wrong.

[drumguy8800]

As for the Cotton Belt line's low ridership... couldn't you say the same thing about the Dallas North Tollway extention to what, southern Oklahoma?

Ugh, has anyone been on the tollway extension into Frisco? It's painted blue and gray, the lightpoles look like they're out of.. dollar general.. and the street signs are red along the service roads. How WEIRD!

[texman]

Ugh, has anyone been on the tollway extension into Frisco? It's painted blue and gray, the lightpoles look like they're out of.. dollar general

I thought it looked very retro to say the least, alot better than those Texas issued highway light poles.

[Columbus Civil]

I think that part of the tollway looks great.

[freewaytincan]

I think that part of the tollway looks great.

Of course you do. It's blue and gray, like your favorite store!

[texman]

If this subway becomes a reality, will this be a Mockingbird type station, then go under ground, or a cityplace type? Did DART ever say?

[RobertB]

If this subway becomes a reality, will this be a Mockingbird type station, then go under ground, or a cityplace type? Did DART ever say?
There are a lot of details at DART's site:

Northwest Corridor
LRT Line to Farmers Branch and Carrollton
Final Environmental Impact Statement
http://www.dart.org/nweis/nwfeistoc.htm

However, this FEIS appears to not include the Love Field Tunnel in the "Selected LRT Alternative". This is probably because the tunnel is still an iffy proposition -- DART has all its ducks lined up to get the cheaper alternative in place ASAP.

As far as I can tell, the most definitive doc is Appendix E, dated October 2001. In it, DART evaluates several alternatives, and draws on information from an engineering study from September 2001 (available as Appendix F, a very interesting look into Dallas' geology). It turns out that DART is better off boring a tunnel 70 to 90 feet deep, rather than a shallow cut-and-cover tunnel, because of the shallow water table and tricky, expanding rock. Appendix F also has notes relating to your original question: what's the station going to be like. The answer, if I recall correctly, is "it depends". :)

Here's "Alternative A-5", the selected alternative. I'm having to retype it, because the pdf is just a scan of the original document.


Alternative A5 follows generally the same alignment as Alternative A2 utilising a deep bore tunnel below the airfield, but adjusting the alignment to clear the east end of runway 31L. This alignment has been developed with further input on soil conditions and tunneling techniques and is proposed to be a deep bore tunnel 70 to 90 feet below the suface. This tunneling method reduces concerns of soil settling in the airfiled area. This alignment was developed as an alternative to A4 tin order to provide a shorter route and larger curve radius for optimal travel time given that the majority of users will be through passengers. The station location would be in the vicinity of the Old East Ticket Wing.

Cost Range: $150 to 280 million ($158 to $188 million delta)
Added Corridor Travel Time: 2.0 minutes

[freewaytincan]

If this subway becomes a reality, will this be a Mockingbird type station, then go under ground, or a cityplace type? Did DART ever say?

Mockingbird was significantly less expensive, and I imagine they would go with that. If they wanted it to be fully underground, they would also have to make it much deeper as well, though I may be wrong on that end. Either way, they'll probably try to tunnel as little as possible and make as much as they can only trenches.

[RobertB]

Mockingbird was significantly less expensive, and I imagine they would go with that. If they wanted it to be fully underground, they would also have to make it much deeper as well, though I may be wrong on that end. Either way, they'll probably try to tunnel as little as possible and make as much as they can only trenches.
You really ought to check out Appendix F. You can tell that DART was thinking along the same lines you were -- cut and cover whenever possible, because surely it'll be cheaper than going 90 feet underground. The problem, as it turns out, is that the water table is very shallow... cutting a trench at the depth they were looking at would have been like building a bridge across Lake Ray Hubbard at an elevation just below the lake level.

As if that weren't bad enough, you've got a geology that's been soaking in it for several million years. So you have subsidence when the ground starts compacting because you've removed the spongy ground below it and replaced it with a tunnel ceiling that sheds water. That's a Bad Thing under an active runway. And that's not all -- apparently the shale layer will actually expand after you tunnel through it!

So as counterintuitive as it may seem, the folks at Dr. Sauer (http://dr-sauer.com/), who did the engineering study for DART, found that it's cheaper to dig down to a stable layer of rock than to dig a shallow cut-and-cover trench.

[freewaytincan]

I didn't mean cut and cover. I meant just cut.

[texman]

You really ought to check out Appendix F. You can tell that DART was thinking along the same lines you were -- cut and cover whenever possible, because surely it'll be cheaper than going 90 feet underground. The problem, as it turns out, is that the water table is very shallow... cutting a trench at the depth they were looking at would have been like building a bridge across Lake Ray Hubbard at an elevation just below the lake level.

As if that weren't bad enough, you've got a geology that's been soaking in it for several million years. So you have subsidence when the ground starts compacting because you've removed the spongy ground below it and replaced it with a tunnel ceiling that sheds water. That's a Bad Thing under an active runway. And that's not all -- apparently the shale layer will actually expand after you tunnel through it!

So as counterintuitive as it may seem, the folks at Dr. Sauer (http://dr-sauer.com/), who did the engineering study for DART, found that it's cheaper to dig down to a stable layer of rock than to dig a shallow cut-and-cover trench.

Theres some cool photos on the website of the construction dr-sauer did on cityplace.
http://dr-sauer.com/projects/ViewProject?category=1&project_id:int=196&sort_on=country_name

[Lakewooder]

The Meadows Building is just about as far north as I care to go...

BTW, I think it would make really cool condos. Oh then again, there are those here who hate that type of architecture as in the Statler/Hilton Grand Hotel downtown..shortsighted though you are...

[drumguy8800]

The Meadows Building is just about as far north as I care to go...

BTW, I think it would make really cool condos. Oh then again, there are those here who hate that type of architecture as in the Statler/Hilton Grand Hotel downtown..shortsighted though you are...

Whoooo? mre? Skooby?

I think it might have to do with the fact that I have functioning eyes and a brain. ¦:- |..

EDIT: oh yes, and a big mouth.

[freewaytincan]

The Meadows Building is just about as far north as I care to go...

No no, I mean that's what people said when it was built. The whole "no one will ever travel faster than the speed of sound" effect.

[brb1081]

According to the DBJ article that was the first post in this thread, the Love Field station would be similar to Mockingbird:
"The Love Field station would be similar to DART's existing, open-cut-tunnel arrangement at Mockingbird Station, and sit about 50 feet below ground level."

[tamtagon]

According to the DBJ article that was the first post in this thread, the Love Field station would be similar to Mockingbird:
"The Love Field station would be similar to DART's existing, open-cut-tunnel arrangement at Mockingbird Station, and sit about 50 feet below ground level."

If the Love Field station gets built, I hope it's configured so that immediately upon getting off the train, people can check baggage and get a boarding pass.

[slfunk]

If the Love Field station gets built, I hope it's configured so that immediately upon getting off the train, people can check baggage and get a boarding pass.

If you have ever flown into Newark, this is the same system that they have, but they go one step forward (Contentintal Airlines that is). They have two options you can check your luggage at Penn Station before getting onto the MTA and then all you have to do is just connect to the the Air Train, or when connecting at the Air Train station they have check-in stations right there. Then again that is only for one Airline.

Its very convient and helps out a bunch when you are in a rush.

[tamtagon]

Its very convient and helps out a bunch when you are in a rush.

It's not like that in Atlanta, and that's just plane stupid!

[RobertB]

It's not like that in Atlanta, and that's just plane stupid!
It's been about 10 years, but I remember the Chicago rail line to O'Hare ran to a point about as far from any terminal as it was physically possible to go. Is it still like that?

[tamtagon]

It's been about 10 years, but I remember the Chicago rail line to O'Hare ran to a point about as far from any terminal as it was physically possible to go. Is it still like that?

Yes, take the train from downtown, exit the train into the airport, go up the escalator, check your bag, walk to your gate. Simple, easy, fast. Love Field, being a much smaller airport should easily be able to pull it off with a combination train & plain station. At DFW, I'm hoping the DART/TRE/DFW People Mover has the efficient, convenient interface - this is vital to increase CBD visitation while reducing traffic congestion.

---
it does seem that taxi services will raise hell over the quick and easy train to plane & plane to train service, but these services must be made to understand they will more than make up the difference with much greater need in the business districts. A greater taxi presence in the surface street congestion for a quick trip through downtown, oaklawn, uptown, deep ellum, sundance square will discourage some locals from unparking-driving-parking to get to a nearby destination. Additionally, reparking fees would be applied toward the taxi cost making the out of pocket cost of a quick trip virtually the same.

[slfunk]

I think we would all agree that the train stop at Love Field is the best decision. I think this would be the best use of tax payers' money for the Dart Rail, at this point. I will say it is an alternative (knowing the better solution is the rail connection), but know that the second option is to have a bus shuttle tunnel of somesort from a rail station to the airport. This is a viable option and would still connect both airports with downtown. There are more coefficents and margins for error in that plan which can cause confussion, but would be something we could offer that is a stretch for many other communities. Either way we are on the right track with the connections there.

I wish they would put this to vote for the people should financing not be approved. I think Dart has proven itself over the last decade or so as being a key asset. So if Dart officials feel that this would not pass in D.C., I would hope they would give the citizens the opportunity to vote on bonds or something to that effect to build this.

Should this pass and it will be a few of months before we know the final result, it would have a dramatic effect on downtown and the Las Collinas submarket.

[RobertB]

I wish they would put this to vote for the people should financing not be approved. I think Dart has proven itself over the last decade or so as being a key asset. So if Dart officials feel that this would not pass in D.C., I would hope they would give the citizens the opportunity to vote on bonds or something to that effect to build this.
I'm not sure DART wants to put its credibility on the line for this issue. As we've seen just six days ago, elections sometimes don't go the way you expect (Bush/Lupe in Dallas County?).

If DART goes to Washington and doesn't get funding, they can come back and say "well, that's the way it works inside the Beltway," and be no worse off than when they started. But if they call an election, it will bring out local anti-transit opposition -- the sort of folks who think Light Rail brings graffiti (http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showpost.php?p=40599&postcount=21), and that $300 million is better spent on a stadium than on a rail system. The stakes become much higher, because the vote becomes a referendum on DART, not just a vote on a particular piece of infrastructure.

And if DART loses, we all lose. That's not a battle I'm ready to fight.

[texman]

I'm sure this will happen, Dallas has already raised most of the money for the tunnel and the FTA has given DART the "recomended" status on all of our expansion funds in the past so I don't really have a doubt. Man, I can't wait to see the signs at love field saying "Trains to City" (I think Chicago's Midway airport transit sign says that)or somthing like that.

[texman]

But if they call an election, it will bring out local anti-transit opposition -- the sort of folks who think Light Rail brings graffiti (http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showpost.php?p=40599&postcount=21), and that $300 million is better spent on a stadium than on a rail system..

Im tired of people saying DART is an utter failure and has "only taken people off of buses *cough cough* Wendell Cox. After reading those articals posted on here awhile back about DART's 1988 rail referendum, I now don't even take into consideration what these people have to say. Sorry, had to put my two cents.

[freewaytincan]

Im tired of people saying DART is an utter failure and has "only taken people off of buses *cough cough* Wendell Cox. After reading those articals posted on here awhile back about DART's 1988 rail referendum, I now don't even take into consideration what these people have to say. Sorry, had to put my two cents.

If DART is a failure, I'm the Easter Bunny.

[texman]

This was on the DMN webpage today:

LOVE FIELD AREA: DART puts off decision on airport rail tunnel

DART has delayed a decision on whether to run light rail directly into Dallas Love Field because federal officials are still reviewing plans. Originally, the Dallas Area Rapid Transit board of directors was scheduled to vote Tuesday on a $160 million airport rail tunnel. Instead, the transit agency is still waiting for the Federal Transit Administration to determine whether it could recommend for federal funding a northwest and southeast Dallas rail plan that includes the tunnel. The DART board should take up the issue Nov. 23. The Dallas City Council is scheduled to vote today on a resolution stating its role in a cost-sharing agreement for the project.

Tony Hartzel

[brb1081]

If the Love Field station gets built, I hope it's configured so that immediately upon getting off the train, people can check baggage and get a boarding pass.

that'd be nice...stationside checkin
especially if it's a below grade station
it would suck to have to drag the luggage up an escalator

[jsoto3]

Apparently funding has been secured for the connection to Love Field:

http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=3133

Dallas is the state's biggest winner in the highway lottery this year, with $4.7 billion in transportation funds earmarked for a plan that includes toll roads and two light rail transit connections to the area's two airports over the next 12 years.

[Mballar]

Any type of funding news is good news to hear regarding the Love Field Tunnel. However, I don't think that this state funding will allow DART to circumvent the need for federal funds. So lets continue to keep our fingers crossed on that.