Category: covid-19

(FORT WORTH, TX – March 19, 2020) – As the COVID-19 events continue to increase within the service area, Trinity Metro is making some temporary service adjustments to reduce the COVID-19 risk for customers and employees.

“We are making service modifications to maintain operations to help passengers get where they need to go,” said Trinity Metro President and CEO Bob Baulsir. “Our mission is to provide mobility options, and we want to ensure that our customers have transportation during this health crisis.”

Beginning Monday, March 23, all regular bus service will operate on a modified Sunday schedule seven days a week. This means that the schedule those routes use on Sunday will be duplicated throughout the week. Routes that do not operate on Sunday, such as the downtown Lunch Line and 71-Forest Hill, will be temporarily suspended. This service change is expected to last two weeks, and then the status will be re-evaluated to see if any additional changes are needed. If other alterations are needed, Trinity Metro will provide updates three days before changes are implemented.

Express routes 63X/64X and 65X will continue to operate on their regular schedules. 

During this time, TEXRail will shift to an hourly service, which is based upon the current schedule, seven days a week. Trinity Railway Express (TRE) will operate six days a week based upon its current Saturday schedule, with no service on Sundays.

Reducing risk with free fares

To limit the risk of COVID-19 exposure, Trinity Metro will offer free rides for these two weeks, beginning Monday, on bus routes and TEXRail. This should significantly minimize the amount of contact between operators and customers as well as conductors and riders. 

“Everyone can practice social distancing by reducing the exposure between staff and customers,” Baulsir said. “Providing a safe environment is vital for our customers and our employees.”

Because TRE is a shared service with DART, those passengers will need a ticket to ride.

The number of ACCESS rides will be reduced, with a focus on only making essential trips. ZIPZONE services are not impacted by this temporary change. 

Trip planning tools impacted

Because of the modified schedules, the Trinity Metro trip planner and the GoPass trip planning features for travel in Tarrant County will be temporarily unavailable, beginning March 23.

After the data files with updated service modifications are processed, the Next Bus app, Trintiy Metro trip planner and the GoPass trip planning tool on the GoPass app will be working again.

About Trinity Metro

Trinity Metro is a regional transportation system that provides public transportation to meet the mobility needs in Tarrant County. The agency offers connections throughout the North Central Texas region, annually providing 8 million passenger trips on buses, TEXRail, ACCESS paratransit, vanpools and the Trinity Railway Express (TRE), a 34-mile commuter rail line jointly owned and operated with Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART). Trinity Metro is the sole owner and operator of TEXRail, a 27-mile commuter rail line that runs between downtown Fort Worth and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport’s Terminal B. 

Dear valued customer, At Trinity Metro, our top priority is to help safeguard our customers and employees by modifying procedures to reduce the risk of exposure to COVID-19. We are taking extra steps to increase the cleaning frequency of high-touch areas such as door handles, railings, benches and ticket vending machines with disinfectant throughout each shift. Buses, vans and ACCESS vehicles are sanitized daily. Trinity Metro TEXRail trains are disinfected daily after they have been in service. The service we provide is essential and many Tarrant County residents rely on our services to access healthcare, food and medicine. While operating our services, we are following recommended safeguards from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Tarrant County Public Health. Trinity Metro will continue to monitor communications with local, state and national health authorities. Trinity Metro customers, partners and employees are reminded to protect their health and the health of others by practicing the following recommended precautions: Avoid close contact with people who are sick. Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Stay home when you are sick. Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, and then throw the tissue in the trash. Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using regular household cleaning spray or wipe. Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. This is especially important before eating, after going to the bathroom, and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing. If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. For more information on symptoms and prevention, please visit the CDC’s website. For questions regarding Trinity Metro’s precautionary measures in response to COVID-19 or Trinity Metro’s services, call customer care representatives at 817-215-8600. Thank you and we look forward to seeing you on board soon.

North Texas public transit agencies have aggressively expanded agency-wide cleaning and safety protocols in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART), Fort Worth’s Trinity Metro and the Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA) all remain in close contact with local, state and national health authorities, including the Texas Department of State Health Services and the CDC, and will continue to monitor the situation for residents in the North Texas region.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART)

DART vehicles now receive additional cleanings throughout the day. High-touch surface areas are cleaned with a solution approved by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as successful in killing the coronavirus, as well as influenza, rhinovirus, norovirus, salmonella, staphylococcus, and e-coli. High-touch surfaces include handrails, door buttons, grab rails and hanging straps.

Procedures remain enforced to isolate vehicles and areas that have been exposed to unsanitary and unhygienic situations. This includes removing vehicles from service that have been exposed to biohazard situations from passengers. DART encourages passengers who feel sick or are experiencing symptoms to stay home and avoid public places.

As a DART passenger, if you see an unhygienic surface that needs attention, please contact DART Customer Service at (214) 979-1111, or you can use the “DART Say Something” app, which can be downloaded from the Apple Store or Google Play. DART also reminds customers that the best way to stay informed about changes in service is through DART Alerts. Customers can sign-up for DART Alerts at dart.org.

Denton County Transit Authority (DCTA)

Along with regular cleanings, DCTA uses a medical-grade disinfecting spray on all buses, trains and at the Downtown Denton Transit Center (DDTC). In addition, they’ve increased the cleaning of critical high-touch point areas on trains, buses and at facilities such as door handles, counter tops and steering wheels. DCTA riders and employees can find more information at RideDCTA.net, including signing up for agency Rider Alerts.

DCTA encourages passengers who feel sick or are experiencing symptoms to stay home and avoid public places. If you have questions or concerns, please send feedback via DCTA’s GORequest platform which is available at RideDCTA.net or you can download the free mobile app on the Apple and Google Play store.

Trinity Metro

Trinity Metro is taking precautionary measures to help safeguard customers and employees by modifying procedures to reduce exposure to coronavirus. Extra efforts have been made to increase the frequency of cleaning of high-touch areas such as door handles, railings, benches and ticket vending machines with disinfectant throughout each shift. Buses and vans are sanitized daily and all buses are equipped with ionizers, which help purify the air as it is recirculated in the vehicle. Trinity Metro TEXRail trains are disinfected daily after they have been in service.

Trinity Metro customers, partners and employees are reminded to protect their health and the health of others by washing hands regularly, covering their mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing and staying home when sick.

For questions regarding Trinity Metro’s precautionary measures in response to COVID 19 or Trinity Metro’s services, customer care representatives are available at 817-215-8600. Customers can sign up for alerts from Trinity Metro at RIDETRINITYMETRO.org.

Each North Texas agency is also prepared to escalate cleaning processes for transit vehicles should the need arise.

Trinity Railway Express (TRE)

The TRE (jointly operated by DART and Trinity Metro) continues to take additional steps to prevent the spread of the virus on trains as well as in office locations. Operation teams are disinfecting TRE trains with a focus on high-tough areas. This includes the use of a hospital-grade spray disinfectant, foaming germicidal cleaner and disinfecting wipes. Train crews have been provided hand sanitizers and access to gloves, and signage has been posted on trains to educate both employees and the public on how to avoid getting sick.

TRE passengers are encouraged to sign-up for Rider Alerts about service changes at trinityrailwayexpress.org

Protect Yourself

There is currently no vaccine to prevent coronavirus disease (COVID-19). However, as a reminder, CDC always recommends everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of respiratory diseases, including:

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Stay home when you are sick.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
• If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.

MEDIA CONTACTS

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART)

Gordon Shattles

gshattles@dart.org

(214) 749-3010

 

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART)

Mark A. Ball

mball@dart.org

(214) 749-3295

 

Denton County Transit Authority (DCTA)

Adrienne Hamilton

ahamilton@dcta.net

(972) 316-6114

 

Trinity Metro

Laura Hanna

Laura.Hanna@ridetm.org

(817) 215-8973