The University Park city council voted unanimously on Jan. 6 to hold a special election on whether to withdraw from the Dallas Area Rapid Transit system.
With its decision, University Park joined a growing list of cities that plan to ask voters to decide this spring whether to continue their DART membership.
If voters approve DART withdrawal at the May 2 election, services in University Park will immediately cease, though the city will remain responsible for a share of DART’s debt and long-term contracts. University Park city manager Robbie Corder said after the meeting that the city’s payments could continue for about a decade to fulfill those obligations.
University Park has contributed more than $122 million to DART since its inception in 1983, and sent $7.3 million to the system last year.
In addition to a bus route on Preston Road, DART provides a portion of the cost of an SMU shuttle, paratransit, and GoLink services in University Park — all of which could be replaced at a fraction of the amount of the city’s contribution, council member Phillip Philbin explained.
“While I understand and believe in the value of safe, clean, and reliable regional public transportation,” he said. “I’m concerned about DART’s model, and … in particular about how it applies to University Park.”
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Philbin said that dedicating one cent of the city’s local sales tax to DART — half of what it is allowed to charge — places University Park at a competitive disadvantage compared to nonmember cities, such as Coppell and Flower Mound, which keep all of their two-cent tax.
He also argued that withdrawing from DART will only become more expensive. DART claims University Park already owes an additional $91.7 million to the system for its share of DART obligations. The city would be on the hook for at least an additional $22.55 million in debt if it spends six more years as a member.
“The numbers are stunning,” Philbin said. “I’m not saying it should be a one-to-one correlation, but this is nowhere close.”
Residents who spoke in favor of remaining in DART included users of its services, and parents of disabled adults who rely on paratransit.
Kevin Norfleet called himself a frequent user of GoLink and Park and Ride, and said DART services help University Park remain at the “center of gravity of the metroplex.”
“To ensure the long term future and the prosperity of this community, we need a strong DART, we need a strong Dallas, we need this community to have a highly functional, valuable, mass transit system so that we continue to grow and thrive,” he said.
Several parents of adult children with disabilities explained that DART services are vital to their families. Its reliable and affordable transportation enables their young adults to be independent, and to access employment and essential services, they said.
“Accessible transportation is not a luxury for our kids,” Julie Collier explained. “It is a necessity that enables people with disabilities to live a full, independent, and connected life.”
Philbin responded that the city could contract with the provider that supplies DART’s paratransit services at a cost of less than $50,000 annually based on the number of University Park paratransit rides DART provided last year.
DART board chair Randall Bryant asked the council to refrain from calling an election, and to give the system more time to address University Park’s concerns.
“DART does not need any additional cities to call for this election right now to make us understand the severity and the seriousness of this issue,” he said. “That won’t be accomplished by adding one more city to that pile.”
