TEX Rail receives federal Record of Decision to proceed toward construction

TEX Rail receives federal Record of Decision to proceed toward construction

FORT WORTH (September 29, 2014) – The Trinity Metro announced today that the TEX Rail project has received a Record of Decision (ROD) from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that could
lead to the start of construction during 2016.

A ROD issued by FTA signals formal federal approval of the TEX Rail Environmental Impact Statement.

“Achieving a Record of Decision is an acknowledgment of the importance of TEX Rail in helping to meet the growing public transportation needs in Greater Fort Worth and Tarrant County, and to provide essential connections to other transit systems across the North Central Texas region,” said Scott Mahaffey, Trinity Metro’s Board Chair.

The initial service of TEX Rail will extend from downtown Fort Worth, across northeast Tarrant County and Grapevine, and into DFW Airport at Terminal B. This 27-mile regional rail corridor is projected to have more than 10,000 daily riders at initial start of service in 2018 using eight stations. By 2035, there will be 10 stations and more than 15,500 daily riders.

“We want to acknowledge the strong regional and congressional support throughout the development and planning of TEX Rail, including FTA Region VI in Fort Worth, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Southwest Region in Fort Worth, the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG), and Trinity Metro’s TEX Rail partners: Tarrant County, the City of Fort Worth, the City of Grapevine, and DFW Airport,” Mahaffey said.

“These supporters, and many other community and state leaders, also were instrumental in TEX Rail’s inclusion in the President’s 2015 Budget for New Starts funding,” he said.

The New Starts process will qualify TEX Rail to eventually receive federal funding for approved expenditures of up to 50 percent of TEX Rail’s estimated capital cost.

The Record of Decision permits Trinity Metro to contract with an engineering services firm to advance engineering and to begin acquiring property necessary for stations and other property along the rail corridor.

The next major milestone in the federal New Starts Process will be after FTA provides Trinity Metro with permission to enter engineering, at which point Trinity Metro will place its order for rail vehicles, according to Mahaffey.

The last major milestone in the New Starts process will be the FTA’s awarding a Full Funding Grant Agreement that will allow for TEX Rail construction to commence.