Leaders from North Texas cities urged the city of Dallas on Thursday for clarity on the completion date of an economic impact study connected to a proposed high-speed rail project between Fort Worth and Dallas.
The Regional Transportation Council on Thursday held a special two-hour session on the high-speed rail project in response to a vote from the Dallas City Council voting in June opposing any new elevated rail through the city’s central business district.
Michael Morris, the director of transportation for the North Central Texas Council of Governments, (NCTCOG) presented an alternative that would take the final mile of a proposed 30-mile Fort Worth to Dallas route west around the downtown area of Dallas.
The alternative route comes after Dallas council expressed concerns about a more eastern route that would weave through the southwest portions of downtown, just east of the Hyatt Regency Hotel and Reunion Tower.
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The city of Dallas said it would not decide which route it supports until after the city completes an economic impact study in coordination with Fort Worth and Arlington on the expected benefits of the high-speed rail.
Councilmember Chad West, who is one of three Dallas councilmembers who serves on the 45-member RTC, asked Morris what delay, if any, the Dallas study would have on the current timeline for the Dallas to Fort Worth high-speed rail project.
“Getting consensus on a process to hit a home run on high-speed rail is much more important to me,” Morris replied. Morris added if the project is delayed by several months or a year, it’s an acceptable outcome as long the RTC can agree on a route when it meets in August.
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Morris said NCTCOG must have 30% of the design process complete by February when it submits it to the Federal Railroad Administration and the Federal Transit Administration for review. He added staff are not able to do that level of design process on two routes, so a consensus is required soon.
But at Thursday’s workshop, Dallas City councilmembers in attendance were unable to provide a timeline for when the economic impact study, which is needed to decide support for a route, would be complete.
Arlington mayor Jim Ross said the RTC needs a clearer sense from Dallas when the study will be complete.
“We can’t allow one part of the region to jeopardize our ability to meet the deadlines that are required from us,” Ross said.
Morris said the lack of clarity is why he hopes the RTC will support the new western route around downtown Dallas which will bypass the need for the city council to decide which route it supports by a particular date.
The route is part of a larger plan for high-speed rail connecting Houston and Dallas and potentially having North Texas serve as a central hub for a national high-speed rail system in the continental U.S. and Mexico.
