Dallas Streetcar

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Dallas Streetcar
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Tram car in Oak Cliff (2016)
Basic information
Country United States
city Dallas
opening April 13, 2015
operator Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART)
Infrastructure
Gauge 1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Power system 750 volts = overhead line and
battery operation (Houston Bridge)
Stops 6th
business
Lines 1
Line length 4 km
Clock in the peak hours 20th
Clock in the SVZ 30th
vehicles 4th

The Dallas streetcar , English Dallas Streetcar , is a streetcar in the Texan city ​​of Dallas . It is operated by the Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) public transport company, which previously built and operates the Dallas light rail system.

history

The predecessor is the M-line Trolley Tram from Dallas, which was built as a museum train in Uptown north of the Dallas business center. This showed, also due to the connection to the light rail system for commuter traffic, a high level of popularity even without tourists. The economic boom in Uptown led to considerations to build a tram south of the business center of Dallas.

The Dallas DART light rail system is heavily sponsored by the city. In December 2010, funding of US $ 23 million was secured from the TIGER ( Transportation Income Generating Economic Recovery ) program of the 2009 stimulus package ( American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ). A further three million in federal funds could also be secured, also through the support of the regional council ( North Central Texas Council of Governments / NCTCOG). DART then postponed funding for the people mover to Dallas Love Field Airport and poured $ 22 million into the project. In January 2013, the NTCTCOG voted for $ 31 million in state funding originally earmarked for the people mover. Together, the funding commitments were sufficient to implement the first two phases of the project.

In phase 1, a line was built from Dallas Union Station out of town to the Dallas Methodist Medical Center - this is a hospital complex with 585 beds and 60 wards, where 175,000 patients are treated annually. Construction began in May 2013. This part was put into operation in April 2015, which right from the start offered a 20-minute cycle on weekdays, initially only with the only vehicle that had been delivered by then. In February 2016, the operating hours were extended so that the service runs from 9:30 a.m. to midnight, both on weekdays and on weekends.

In Phase 2, the route from Dallas Methodist Medical Center (Beckley Station) was extended out of town to the Bishop Arts District . This is a development area in the Oak Cliff district , where the Oak Cliff Film Festival takes place. Construction was confirmed in April 2015 (DART) and June 2015 (Dallas City Council). The line was put into operation in August 2016, with the use of an additional vehicle making it possible to run every 20 minutes.

A historic M-line tram on the eponymous McKinney Avenue (2015)

In the future, the route is to be extended towards the city center so that it also connects to the M-line tram at the St. Paul station. There, as in phase 1 at the Dallas Union Station, there is also a connection to the light rail. In the course of the D2 tunnel of the light rail, a transition to downtown can also be created. Two more vehicles, followed by four in stock, were ordered in July 2015 and delivered in summer 2016.

The use of the tram, like the M-line before, is free of charge. When extending through the downtown business center, one would like to introduce a tariff. The M-line has also been free to date.

Web links

Commons : Dallas Streetcar  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files