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Media Relations Contact:
Morgan Lyons
July 18, 2007
Dallas region semi-finalist for federal traffic-fighting grant
Dallas is one of nine cities named semi-finalists for a U. S. Department of Transportation grant program that promises up to $1.2 billion to address traffic congestion in the nation's most congested cities.
U. S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters is scheduled to select the winning projects in mid-August. Up to five cities may be selected. The projects developed by the winning cities would be implemented by the end of 2009.
Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is lead agency for the regional Urban Partnership Agreement (UPA) submittal. DART's partners in the project include the Texas Department of Transportation, North Texas Tollway Authority, North Central Texas Council of Governments, the Fort Worth Transportation Authority (the T), and the cities of Dallas, Richardson, Plano, Irving, Arlington, University Park, Highland Park and Grand Prairie.
The proposal supports projects on I-30, between Dallas and Fort Worth, and U. S. 75, north of downtown Dallas. Potential project elements include:
- Congestion pricing (tolling)
- Transit (rail, bus rapid transit)
- Intelligent Transportation Systems (message boards to help customers avoid highway incidents or early-warning commuter notification systems advising them to avoid specific routes or use transit as an alternative)
- Telecommuting strategies (such as shared workplace hubs outside of downtown areas)
The proposal builds on some regional initiatives already under way. For example, initial phases of the region's first managed High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes are scheduled to open on I-30 between Loop 12 (west of downtown Dallas) and the Dallas/Tarrant county line this summer. This is part of a 50-mile expansion of DART's current 33-mile HOV network. New lanes will open through the summer on U. S. 75, I-30 east of Jim Miller Road, and LBJ Freeway (I-635) between I-30 and Central Expressway.
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