Regional transportation leaders are giving Dallas Area Rapid Transit and its member cities a February deadline to resolve discussions over potential cuts to funding contributions.
During a meeting of the Regional Transportation Council Thursday, local leaders debated the council鈥檚 priorities for the upcoming state legislative session.
The draft program included language that would support protecting 鈥渆xisting transportation authority dedicated funding.鈥� Elected officials from member cities that have called to cut DART鈥檚 funding pushed to remove that line.
鈥淒ART is our most expensive service in Irving. We, I think, put in over $100 million,鈥� said Irving council member Brad LaMorgese, who put forward the motion. 鈥淥ur residents are not seeing, I think, the efficiency that they'd like to see.鈥�
LaMorgese added that he doesn鈥檛 think non-DART member cities on the RTC council should vote on an item when they鈥檙e not a part of the agency. DART serves 13 member cities.
Carrollton Mayor Steve Babick seconded LaMorgese鈥檚 motion, calling it 鈥減remature鈥� to give RTC staff legislative direction before an upcoming study on DART鈥檚 cost and revenue forecast, dubbed Transit 2.0.
Both Irving and Carrollton are among the six cities that want to reduce their funding to DART.
鈥淢y concern is that this body may be stepping in to give legislative direction on matters that only 13 cities are members of, whereas the region is not,鈥� Babick said. 鈥淸The region] ought to allow the DART board, the member cities, to continue to have these discussions and work through it.鈥�
DART board chair Gary Slagel responded by asking RTC council members to vote against LaMorgese鈥檚 motion.
鈥淲e are diligently working with our cities to try to come up with a resolution on funding, and we're having discussions on economic development and ways we can become better partners with the member cities,鈥� Slagel said. 鈥淭o ask for a reduction and improvement is hard to do.鈥�
Dallas council member Omar Narvaez reminded the council that just last week, the city voted to support full funding for DART in its own legislative agenda.
鈥淲e are not in the same boat with our other member cities,鈥� Narvaez said. 鈥淲e have not been produced with the plan.鈥�
Narvaez, who also chairs the city of Dallas鈥� transportation committee, added that his city has not been a part of conversations that other DART member cities are involved in.
鈥淲e were not at the table as far as whatever the other member cities are doing,鈥� Narvaez said.
Collin County Commissioner Duncan Webb said he understands both sides of the issue, as both DART member and non-member cities are in his jurisdiction.
鈥淚'm torn,鈥� Webb said. 鈥淚 have member cities that are part of DART, and then I have a lot of fast growing cities that are not part of DART, but are looking for transit opportunities.鈥�
He proposed a compromise 鈥� include the language to support the 鈥渟tatus quo鈥� in transit funding, with room for the RTC to change its position if member cities and DART come up with a resolution or there are other recommendations from cities, DART officials or Transit 2.0 consultants.
鈥淚f we can't reach that consensus by February, then we take the whole thing out,鈥� Webb said.
The RTC ultimately voted to approve the draft legislative program with Webb鈥檚 amendment and plans to discuss it at a future meeting.
Pablo Arauz Pe帽a is 四虎影院鈥檚 growth and infrastructure reporter. Got a tip? Email Pablo at parauzpena@kera.org. You can follow him on X .
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