Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is a transit agency serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex of Texas. It operates buses, light rail, commuter rail, and high-occupancy vehicle lanes in Dallas and twelve of its suburbs. In , the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of .
DART was created in 1983 to replace a municipal bus system and funded expansion of the region's transit network through a sales tax levied in member cities. DART rail began operation in 1996 and operates over of track. It was the longest light rail system in the United States until 2023, when it was surpassed by Los Angeles Metro Rail with the consolidation of the A Line.
DART jointly operates the Trinity Railway Express commuter rail line between Dallas and Fort Worth, with Trinity Metro. The agency also operates the Dallas Streetcar and provides funding for the non-profit M-Line Trolley.
History Precursor agencies The Dallas Transit System (DTS) was a public transit service operated by the city of Dallas, from 1964 to 1983. DTS was formed by the consolidation of various privately owned transit companies and streetcar lines. Prior to DTS, the company was formerly known as the Dallas Railway and Terminal Company when Dallas had an extensive streetcar system that spanned from Oak Cliff to North Dallas. The name was changed shortly after the last streetcar ran in January 1956. DART formally took over operations of the DTS in 1988.
In 2000, DART employees restored a 1966 DTS bus to its original state.
Creation of DART DART was created on August 13, 1983, as a regional replacement for the DTS (Although the name "Dallas Area Rapid Transit" was intended to reflect the new agency's coverage of the greater Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, its acronym DART almost immediately evoked comparisons to San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit system, known as BART). Citizens of 15 area cities had voted to levy a 1% sales tax to join the system by the time it began transit services in 1984 (though the formal acquisition of the Dallas Transit System wouldn't be complete until 1988).
In 1985, member cities Carrollton and Farmers Branch held elections to pull out of DART, though the measures failed. But shifting suburban politics and a loss of confidence in DART management after voters declined to support DART's measure to incur long term debt in 1988 led to seven more pullout votes, two of which (Flower Mound and Coppell) were successful. Just one suburb joined DART – the tiny community of Buckingham, which was later annexed by DART member city Richardson.
Financial scandal In December 2007, DART revealed it was facing a $1 billion shortfall in funds earmarked for the Blue Line rail service to Rowlett and Orange Line rail service to Irving, and the DFW Airport.
In January 2008, DART announced it would divert monies from rail lines being built in Dallas. When Dallas officials protested, DART president and executive director Gary Thomas—who had known about the shortfall for at least eight months—announced the agency would borrow more money.
In late January 2008, DART Board chair Lynn Flint Shaw, who was also treasurer of Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert's "Friends of Tom Leppert" fund-raising committee, resigned from her DART post. In February, she surrendered to the police on charges of forgery. On March 10, Shaw and her husband, political analyst Rufus Shaw, were found dead in their home in what turned out to be a murder suicide.
2016 shooting
On July 7, 2016, one DART officer was among several people shot in a mass shooting targeting police officers providing security at a Black Lives Matter protest. One of the officers, identified as seven-year veteran Brent Thompson, died from his injuries and became the first DART officer to be killed in the line of duty since the department's inception.
New bus network On January 24, 2022, DART's bus network, which had dated back to DART's 1983 incorporation, was completely overhauled. The overhaul, branded as DARTzoom, was intended to improve the bus system's service reach, frequency, and hours of operation. All DARTzoom local routes would be available 5 AM to midnight, seven days a week. The centerpiece of the system was 22 "core frequent" routes, which would be available from 4 AM to 1 AM with 20-minute headways for most of the day and 15-minute headways during peak periods.
DARTzoom saw many short or low-use routes consolidated or removed, and bus stops were re-organized to be a constant distance apart. Eliminated routes were usually replaced with GoLink zones. The system also introduced a new route numbering scheme, which assigned route numbers and colors based on a route's frequency, rather than the previous network's type designations. Only one route (883, a shuttle route sponsored by the University of Texas at Dallas) retained its original designation.
To celebrate the new network and allow riders time to adjust, all rides on the new network were free for the first week of operation.
2026 withdrawal elections In 2023, a study by Ernst & Young detailed each DART member city's sales tax contributions relative to how much DART spent in each on services, highlighting an imbalance where several of the agency's wealthier, suburban members, such as Plano and Highland Park, contribute disproportionally to the agency. In 2025, the Plano City Council, as well as Republican representative Matt Shaheen, asked the state legislature to consider a bill which would redirect 25% of DART's sales tax revenue back to member cities for their own transit projects. This bill, called the "DART killer" by opponents, failed to advance through both chambers, though the city planned to continue to pursue other options. By Fall, Plano had officially begun considering calling an election to leave the agency, explicitly citing the EY study's findings as a primary factor. On November 5, despite substantial opposition from speakers, the council voted 8–0 to schedule a withdrawal election in May 2026. Farmer's Branch and Highland Park had voted to call elections on November 4, while Irving voted to call one on November 6. University Park joined the group on January 6, 2026. Addison became the sixth and final city to call an election on January 28 after having previously rejected calls to do so in December.
The cities that scheduled withdrawal elections primarily planned to replace DART with microtransit services, although some, including Plano, sought agreements to continue limited partnerships with DART to retain access to the agency's rail network, preventing the closure of the stations in their city limits. As a part of negotiations to get the cities to cancel their elections, the Dallas City Council voted to give up the city's majority on DART's governing board, allowing room for greater representation to the agency's smaller cities. The final compromise, which also included returning a smaller portion of cities' sales tax contributions for microtransit services, led Plano, Irving, and Farmer's Branch to cancel their withdrawal elections. Withdrawal elections in the remaining cities were held on May 2, with Addison and University Park voting to stay, while Highland Park voted to leave, becoming the first city to leave the agency since Flower Mound and Coppell did in 1989. +CityStay%Leave%TotalAddison1,50070.0%64230.0%2,142Highland Park46830.3%1,07869.7%1,546University Park1,46653.7%1,26546.3%2,731
Light rail
DART's light rail system comprises between four lines, which connect northern suburbs, South Dallas neighborhoods, and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport to Downtown Dallas. The system utilizes custom-built Kinki Sharyo SLRV vehicles, which are electrically powered and feature level boarding in the center segment of the car.
As of , DART light rail has average weekday boardings, making it the 8th-most ridden light rail system in the U.S. +DART light rail linesLineDescriptionLengthStationsOpenedLast extendedPlano to West Oak Cliff2619962002Rowlett to South Oak Cliff2319962016Carrollton to Pleasant Grove2420092010DFW Airport to Plano3120102014 Before the 1983 membership election, DART created a plan for of rail. After several cities (specifically Duncanville, Grand Prairie, and Mesquite) voted not to join the agency and a 1988 bond plan to fund the system failed, DART settled on a pared-down system, consisting of of light rail and of commuter rail. The first two light rail lines in the system, the Red and Blue Lines, opened in 1996.
Streetcars
Dallas Streetcar
The Dallas Streetcar is a modern streetcar connecting downtown Dallas to Methodist Dallas Medical Center and Bishop Arts District in northern Oak Cliff. The line connects to DART's and at EBJ Union Station. The line is owned by the city of Dallas and operated by DART under a joint funding agreement.
The streetcar line was built in two phases from May 2013 to August 2016. An extension of the line further into downtown, which would allow for a direct connection to the M-Line Trolley, has been proposed.
M-Line Trolley
The M-Line Trolley is a heritage streetcar line in Dallas's Uptown neighborhood. The trolley connects to DART light rail at the Cityplace/Uptown and St. Paul stations.
The trolley service is owned and operated by the McKinney Avenue Transit Authority, a private nonprofit, but DART and the Uptown Improvement District provide a joint operating subsidy that allows the service to be fare-free.
Commuter rail
Trinity Railway Express
Trinity Railway Express (TRE) is a commuter rail service connecting downtown Dallas with downtown Fort Worth. The service is jointly operated by DART and Trinity Metro, Fort Worth's transit operator. It was first opened in 1996 and was extended to Fort Worth in late 2001.
TRE connects to four of DART's light rail lines, Fort Worth's TEXRail line, and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (via bus). Service is available on weekdays and Saturdays with 30–60 minute headways. Sunday service is only available during the State Fair of Texas and other major events.
As of , the TRE has average weekday boardings, making it the 17th-most ridden commuter rail system in the U.S.
Silver Line
The Silver Line is a commuter rail service that runs between Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and Plano along a former St. Louis Southwestern corridor. The line, first proposed as part of DART's original 1983 rail plan, opened to passenger service on October 25, 2025. It connects with TEXRail at two locations along the portion of the line where it parallels TEXRail's line near DFW Airport.
Service operates seven days a week with 30–60 minute headways. The Silver Line connects with the DART's Orange, Green, and Red lines providing access to Dallas Love Field, Downtown Dallas via Downtown Carrollton or CityLine/Bush station.
A-train
The A-train is a commuter rail service connecting Denton and Lewisville to DART member Carrollton. The line is operated by the Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA) on a former Missouri–Kansas–Texas corridor it leases from DART.
The A-train connects with DART's at Trinity Mills station, which allows further travel to downtown Dallas. Both DART and DCTA sell regional-fare passes which enable travel on both lines.
Buses
As of 2025, DART operates 75 bus routes, as well as several express routes and shuttle buses.
Most trips in the DART system are carried by the bus network. In the 2022 fiscal year, DART had 72,400 bus trips per average weekday, 54% of the system's total 134,810 trips.
Fleet
DART's fleet initially consisted of diesel buses. In 1998, the agency began using liquefied natural gas buses alongside them as part of a broader environmental initiative.
In October 2012, DART introduced a new fleet of 123 low-floor 14-to-17-passenger buses for On-Call, FLEX, and low-capacity routes. The buses were manufactured by ARBOC Specialty Vehicles.