The city of Dallas is exploring possible expansions of its streetcar network, but questions remain about how the project will be funded.
On Monday the city’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee received an update on a study on current streetcar operations and plans to expand into new areas. But some council members said they’re concerned about a lack of funding.
“It's a rat race,” District 9 council member Paula Blackmon said. “Every time I turn around it's another $50 million here and another $250 million to go for a bond, and it's like, whoa. I mean, it's getting … real because we have no money.”
Dallas has two streetcar lines: The free M-Line trolley is funded through sponsorships and charter service. The Dallas Area Rapid Transit-operated streetcar connecting downtown and Bishop Arts charges a fare and is also funded through the city’s general fund.
The city is looking into new lines that would connect downtown to Lower Greenville via Ross Avenue, Bishop Arts to the Dallas Zoo, and Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center to Fair Park.
The objective of the study was to identify revenue opportunities to reduce reliance on the general fund — which has for years been a source of concern for some city council members.
District 12 council member Cara Mendelsohn said there are not enough riders to justify the general fund revenue spent on the streetcar.
“At the beginning, it had no passenger revenue,” Mendelsohn said. “We got some fare in there, so now it has $90,000 a year revenue and we spend $2.6 million, meaning it's not a lot of rides and we're spending a lot of money on this.”
The Department of Transportation and Public Works presentation outlined different possible funding sources, including advertisements, parking fees and naming rights. Planners are recommending a “package deal” approach with multiple funding sources to cover the costs of the operation and maintenance and any future expansions.
Mendelsohn also questioned why expanding the streetcar system is a priority in areas – including downtown and Fair Park – that already have other modes of transportation available.
“I'm only interested in talking about [areas] that don't have rail,” Mendelsohn said. “I don't understand why we would be doing something that would create redundancy instead of creating connectivity.”
Director of Transportation and Public Works Ghassan Khankarli will go before the committee again this fall with an operation and maintenance report on how to reduce reliance on the general fund. He said the project will not be built unless there is funding.
“You have my commitment, as long as I'm here, we're not gonna build anything that we cannot afford to operate and maintain,” Khankarli said.
Avery Escamilla-Wendell is KERA’s news intern. Got a tip? Email Avery at aescamillawendell@kera.org. You can follow her on Instagram @by_avery_escamilla.
