The Regional Transportation Council is staying neutral in the funding debate between Dallas Area Rapid Transit and cities unhappy with DART’s service.
A sharply divided council voted 17 to 16 Thursday not to back DART in the legislature if the funding debate heads to the Statehouse. The council was debating whether to add the language “Protect existing transportation authority dedicated funding” to the RTC’s legislative agenda.
“We need the transportation authorities to do more, not less,” transportation director Michael Morris said.
With the council taking a neutral position, Morris said he expects to see state legislation filed next month to cut a portion of DART's funding.
“I don't know what the path forward would be because my suspicion is there will be legislation introduced that may or may not be in the interest of this Regional Transportation Council,” Morris said.
DART’s efforts to save its funding
Last October, the RTC gave DART and member cities until the end of this month to resolve its funding debate or it would pull its support in its legislative agenda.
DART’s board chair Gary Slagel told the council that the agency has been meeting with member cities in order to settle the dispute. He and other DART leaders want several member cities to rescind their resolutions calling to reduce the agency’s funding.
“We all want to make sure we're getting the value out of the system that our taxpayers are paying for,” Slagel said.
Since those talks began, member cities have made requests for changing and adding services, including expanding GoLink, eliminating some bus routes and creating circulator routes in some areas, like Legacy West in Plano.
On Tuesday, the board learned that these requests for enhanced services across the system would cost up to $18 million. Slagel said most DART member cities, except for Dallas, told the agency it wants to see more micro-transit.
"They would also like to have a circulator or shuttle system through their community for routes where it made sense," he said. "And maybe we eliminate some large buses in some of the cities because the perception is they're not utilized as they should be."
Slagel told North Texas leaders to continue supporting the agency’s funding in order to benefit the whole region. He added that DART's Silver Line, which will be completed "this calendar year," will add value for some of the cities that want to pull funding.
“We will need some help, I'm sure, from our legislature, but it’s not to take money away, it’s to add money,” Slagel said. “With that, I ask for your support. We are here as an organization to do what you need us to do, satisfy your needs.”
Other transit leaders echoed Slagel’s concerns.
“This is to the detriment of the system, which is then the detriment to the region, if DART gets defunded, there is no going back,” said Dallas City Council Member Omar Narvaez, who chairs the city’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
Slagel said he plans to meet with Narvaez and the transportation committee next week.
Speaking for transit between Dallas and Tarrant Counties, Jeff Davis, board chair for Trinity Metro, said he supports protecting existing funding.
“Everyone is talking about how the region is growing,” Davis said. “We can't build more roads. By not supporting the existing funding, we're making a statement that we really don't support transit.”
Blowback from cities
Thursday’s vote came after a lengthy discussion between city, county and transportation leaders from across North Texas.
Dallas County Judge Clay Lewis Jenkins, the council’s current chair, asked leaders to avoid "back-and-forth" in their disagreements over whether to stay out of the legislative debate or continue supporting DART's funding.
"Everybody, regardless of your thoughts, all want what you perceive to be best for your constituents," he said.
Plano Mayor John Muns was among those arguing that DART’s funding should be reduced and that the RTC should stay neutral.
He referenced a recent report by consultant firm Ernst & Young that showed the value that cities were getting relative to their contributions to DART in 2023. He said Plano "donates" $110 million in sales tax dollars to the agency each year and sees about 40% that much in services.
“I'm very sure that all the city council members and mayors that are here today would have a responsibility to their community to address something as large as that,” Muns said.
A majority of DART’s funding comes from the one-cent sales tax revenue from its 13 member cities. Several want to reduce that contribution by 25%.
Carrollton Mayor Steve Babick said he wasn’t satisfied with the actions that DART has taken so far in addressing cities’ issues with the agency. He said the vote the DART board made to give suburban member cities more say in decisions to add services isn't enough to change his mind.
“One vote on a supermajority for adding services is the only thing that has officially occurred,” Babick said. “A lot of great discussions, but one vote.”
Collin County Commissioner Duncan Webb had originally proposed the February deadline for DART and cities to resolve their debate. He said with the rapid growth occurring in his county, he’s in early talks to potentially develop a new transit agency for the county “because DART can’t get its act together.”
“I'm not out to defund DART,” Webb said. “My objective is to figure out a way that we can put together a transit system for the betterment of the whole region.”
Morris added that he may need to call an emergency meeting before the next scheduled meeting in March to get direction from regional leaders on how to move forward.
Pablo Arauz Peña is KERA’s growth and infrastructure reporter. Got a tip? Email Pablo at parauzpena@kera.org. You can follow him on X @pabloaarauz.
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