Stephen Montoya
It’s exactly 8:45 a.m. as the Route 15 bus arrives at Fort Worth Central Station to pick up several passengers waiting to go to the North Side of the city. Behind me, moving at a rapid pace, is the TEXRail, which operates between Fort Worth and the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport’s Terminal B. On an adjacent track is the Trinity Railway Express (TRE), which runs between Fort Worth and Dallas and is jointly owned and operated by Trinity Metro and DART.
My guides for the day are Chad Edwards, Trinity Metro’s executive vice president of strategy, planning and development, and Laura Hanna, director of communications. I have no idea how many times either of these representatives of Trinity Metro have taken this ride or, more precisely, this very route. However, one thing is for certain, this is my very first time on a Trinity Metro bus. Since my arrival I’ve watched the well-oiled machine of Trinity Metro’s buses and trains drop off and pick up passengers like roving timepieces heading in opposite directions.
The grounds are clean and so is the Route 15 bus, which is where we find ourselves at my behest for our early morning interview. Just a week earlier, I was provided a list of priorities Trinity Metro will be discussing at a series of community engagement events, which started on June 15. These priorities include Trinity Metro On-Demand (ridesharing and paratransit services), an Alliance Express Bus Route with guaranteed on-time service, and improvements to the Fort Worth T&P Station, to name a few.
To kick things off, we chat about the actual bus on which we're riding that, according to Edwards, has a price tag of around $750,000. Currently, Trinity Metro's fleet of transportation options includes 142 buses, 37 paratransit vehicles, and 370 bikes at 62 stations throughout the city. The TEXRail itself is comprised of eight trains that run every 30 minutes, and Trinity Metro also has a vanpool program for commuters. To keep everything operational, 80% of the funding for this local transit system comes from the federal government, with the rest coming from local sales tax.
“All the staff members ride the buses every month and then fill out a survey on their experience,” Edwards says. “They look at things like uniforms, seat belts, cleanliness of the bus. Did the wheelchair ramp work? Are the windows clean? Is it cool or is it warm? That's in the survey that we fill out and then that goes back to operations.”
This is done in addition to the regular service each bus receives every evening at Trinity Metro’s main bus facility at 1600 E. Lancaster Avenue.
Last year, this system had a ridership of nearly 6 million passengers, which means 17,900 riders per weekday relied on the public transportation service for travel.
Trinity Metro On-Demand
Trinity Metro On-Demand, a ridesharing and paratransit service, includes two programs: Access and Zip Zone. Access, a paratransit service that caters to the elderly and disabled, will allow qualifying participants to pay $4, with the rest being subsidized. Zip Zone, meanwhile, is an on-demand service that covers five zones at Alliance, Mercantile, the Southside, and both the south and southeast sections of Tarrant County.
“We have three zones in the south,” Edwards says. “But nobody really knows what Access is or what Zip Zone is, but when you say on-demand service, people tend to understand what that is because they're familiar with Uber and Lyft on demand. Everything will just be on-demand at that point. We're combining those two so that it's a little bit easier for people to understand.”
Stephen Montoya
Improvements to Fort Worth T&P Station
According to Edwards, Trinity Metro's plans for the renowned T&P Station in south downtown will improve the walkway between Lancaster Avenue and T&P Station, as well as pedestrian accessibility to alleviate any confusion as to where riders should go. This joint effort between Trinity Metro, Downtown Fort Worth Inc., and the city of Fort Worth is already 90% complete, Edwards verified.
“That includes not only the pedestrian walkway, but some signage as well to help get around in and through the station,” he says.
Trinity Metro will also be purchasing the property where the T&P Tavern resides in the T&P condo area.
“Not only do we have what we call the ballroom, which is really the terminal area there, that's kind of closed to the public right now, but we're going to also have the restaurant area and the outside of that so that we can market those together and have a better experience,” Edwards says. “Hopefully people will be able to utilize that area and we can open the doors so people can just pass through to get to the station from Lancaster over to the platform area.”
This project is estimated to be completed in the next two years, he says, although many of the pieces for this project are already in motion.
“We will have to find an operator of that particular facility at that restaurant because we do buses, we don't do restaurants, so we need to find somebody that can do that,” he says. “So maybe there's an opportunity there for somebody to think outside the box and utilize that area with the train station and access to East Lancaster and everything.”
Expansion into Mansfield
On-demand service for the new Mansfield route will be up and running by mid-July. This route will make stops at Tarrant County College’s southeast campus, as well as several yet undetermined stops.
“It'll start with just moving around in the city,” Edwards says. “This also means our On Demand service, which will go from corner to corner.”
As far as hubs go, Edwards says there's lots of shopping locations, different schools, and different jobs that could, if demand is high enough, become part of the new route.
“I think part of it is also to figure out what are the big paths; where are people coming from and going to in Mansfield?” he asked. “Over time, once we get all that data, we can talk to Mansfield about saying, ‘you know what, a bus would really work in this area if you did it this way.’”
Grand Opening of Trinity Lake Station
This new station resides at the Trinity Railway Express corridor in East Fort Worth at Trinity Boulevard and Loop 820.
“This is a transit-oriented development,” Edwards says. “We're putting the transit part in that oriented development, and so the station is in there now, there's parking there, and then the developer that owns the property will start to develop with residential housing, commercial restaurants, all sorts of stuff in that area. We're kind of the first step in that area with the transit.”
Alliance Express Bus Route with guaranteed on-time service
This new plan will take the current express route called the North Park and Ride on the east side of 35W and morph it into the Alliance express location, which will be located at a facility further north.
“Right now, we're looking at Westport Parkway, just south of Alliance Airport,” Edwards says. “What we're trying to do is connect people in east and southeast Fort Worth who need jobs to jobs in the Alliance area. The Alliance area needs people to fill jobs, so why can't we make that connection for people? I-35 is congested. The managed lanes for some are expensive. So, we think there is an opportunity to provide a service that would connect Southeast Fort Worth, and downtown Central Station up to the Alliance area, and we would guarantee the travel time and on time performance.”
Edwards says if Trinity Metro misses that timeframe the ride is on them. But he has every confidence this is a possibility if the buses utilize the managed lanes.
“It only takes about 15 minutes to get from Westport Parkway to downtown,” he says. “We can get people where they want to be pretty quick. Once they're up there, then we'll have on demand service too.”
This means if your office isn’t right next to where the mobility hub is, then you plan your trip using the Go Pass app, which will then place an on-demand van at your front door.
“Once you do this, you don't have to call that up again. The system should know what you're trying to do over the entire path and then it'll provide service back and forth every 15 minutes during peak travel periods.”
As we pulled into the North Side Station to catch the TRE back to the Fort Worth Central Station, it quickly dawned on me how convenient it is to have various travel options especially since everyone is pinching pennies nowadays. As we passed through the quiet car to finish our interview, I was taken aback to see the city’s skyline rush by through the large windows of the train. Now I can honestly say I’ve ridden our public transportation while also learning about some of the improvements that will impact these services and upgrades.
It’s for the very this reason Trinity Metro is already in the middle of hosting community engagement events this June to provide an overview of services and highlight new service updates. These events are open to everyone, including Trinity Metro customers and anyone who is interested in learning more about Trinity Metro services. Trinity Metro will use the feedback from these open forums for a five-year-strategic plan the agency expects to unveil next year.
Topics being discussed at these forums include:
- Trinity Metro On-Demand (ridesharing and paratransit services)
- Improvements to Fort Worth T&P Station
- Grand opening of Trinity Lakes Station
- Western-themed rebrand launch of Route 15
- Trinity Metro On-Demand Mansfield launch
- Trinity Metro On-Demand Alliance rebrand/service change
- Downtown bus rebrand replacing Molly the Trolley
- Trinity Metro Bikes launch
- Alliance Express Bus Route with guaranteed on-time service
- Bus routes and service fare updates
“At Trinity Metro, we talk a lot about the nuts and bolts of what the future of our transportation system looks like,” says Rich Andreski, Trinity Metro president and CEO. “This conversation will be formalized with our five-year strategic transportation plan—but we can’t craft that plan without input from the community, because Trinity Metro belongs to the community. We’re looking forward to the opportunity to share information and hear what people have to say about public transit.”
COMMUNITY EVENT SCHEDULE
- Tuesday, June 25 - 6-7:30 p.m.
R.D. Evans Community Center, 3242 Lackland Road, Fort Worth 76116 – on Route 2
- Wednesday, June 26 - 6-7:30 p.m.
Riverside Community Center, 3700 E. Belknap St., Fort Worth 76111 – on Route 11, 54
- Thursday, June 27 - 6-7:30 p.m.
Northside Community Center, 1100 N.W. 18th St., Fort Worth 76164 – on Route 46