Dallas City Council skeptical of bullet train to Fort Worth, prefers TRE improvements

Based on notes by Dallas Documenter Drew Emrich 

Dallas City Council members remain skeptical about the benefits of a high-speed rail development to Fort Worth, saying the high cost, modest decrease in travel time, impacts on downtown developments and lopsided benefit to other cities don’t make it worth it.

During a January 8 Transportation and Infrastructure Committee meeting, council members were given a presentation on the North Central Texas Council of Governments’ (NCTCOG) high-speed rail program, specifically the Dallas to Fort Worth rail.

On June 22, NCTCOG’s Executive Board will vote on Step 1 of the Federal Railroad Administration’s CID Program, which awards a $500k grant to look into the scope, schedule and cost estimate for high-speed rail development. 

NCTCOG-led discussions and studies for a high-speed rail from Dallas to Fort Worth have been ongoing since at least 2020, with the intention of connecting it with the high-speed rail planned from Dallas to Houston. The Dallas to Houston bullet train has been in discussion for more than a decade. Previous DFW to Houston rail plans have failed since the late 1980s.

Issues regarding the Dallas to Fort Worth rail’s funding and routes have been ongoing. Proposed routes have included the train going through private land in Dallas, namely through the Reunion District in downtown and West Dallas.

Routes and alignments that include an elevated rail in Dallas, a tunnel in downtown and a ‘sacrificed’ Reunion Tower have been proposed and contested.

In 2024, the Dallas City Council paused the progress of the project for an economic development study. They also passed a resolution opposing rail development in downtown, Uptown, and Victory Park, protecting a multi-billion dollar redevelopment project in the Reunion District.

The city’s economic impact study said a proposed route not cutting through downtown would add $600 million in annual GDP growth and 3,400 more jobs based on a $6 billion investment. At the January meeting, council members questioned the benefit of the Dallas to Fort Worth bullet train entirely based on the current proposed routes.

“This is actually harmful to Dallas and helpful to Arlington and Fort Worth,” said Cara Mendelsohn, the District 12 council member and Dallas representative on the NCTCOG Executive Board.

Some members said they prefer making improvements to the already existing Trinity Railway Express line instead.

“We need an alignment that is effective, that is non-disruptive, and this alignment… is not good for Dallas,” District 2 Council Member Jesse Moreno said. “I do not see an alignment that I would support outside of the TRE modernization.”

The committee passed the review of the rail program to the wider city council, with the condition that the 2024 resolution protecting downtown, Uptown, and Victory Park be affirmed.

Watch the 1/8 meeting here. Read the full notes here.

About the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee:

The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is a subcommittee of the Dallas City Council. It consists of 7 council members.

Dallas Documenters Drew Emrich attended the Jan. 1 Transportation and Infrastructure Committee meeting, and this brief emerged from his notes. Click here to learn how you can become a paid Documenter at public meetings.