Stations 10 | Status Operating Daily ridership 8,200 | |
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Termini Union Station, DallasT&P Station, Fort Worth | ||
The Trinity Railway Express (or TRE) is a commuter rail line in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It was established by an interlocal agreement between Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) and the Fort Worth Transportation Authority (The T). Each transit authority owns a 50% stake in the joint rail project and contractor Herzog Transit Services operates the line. The TRE began operating in December 1996.
Contents
As of the fourth quarter of 2014, the TRE has an average weekday ridership of 8,200 passengers per day and is the fifteenth most-ridden commuter rail system in the United States. In 2014, the TRE carried 2,293,500 passengers.
Before 2006, the TRE was typically shown as a green line on DART maps and therefore was sometimes referred to as the "Green Line," but this was not an official designation. In 2006, DART chose green as the color for its new light rail route, the Green Line. Since 2006, the TRE has been shown as a dark blue line on DART maps.
History
Named after the Trinity River, which flows between Fort Worth and Dallas, the TRE was launched on December 30, 1996, shortly after the inaugural service of Dallas' DART Light Rail system, operating from Union Station to the South Irving Station in Irving. On September 18, 2000, the line was extended to the Richland Hills Station and, for the first time, there was rail service available between downtown Dallas and DFW Airport. On November 13, 2000 the West Irving Station also opened. On December 3, 2001, the TRE was extended to its current terminus at the T&P Station in downtown Fort Worth.
Route
The eastern terminus of the TRE line is Dallas Union Station on the west side of downtown Dallas. The line runs northwest, past the American Airlines Center and Southwestern Medical Center, through Irving, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Hurst, and Richland Hills before ending with two stops in downtown Fort Worth (the Fort Worth Intermodal Transportation Center at 9th and Jones Streets and the T&P Station on Throckmorton Street). There are a total of ten regular station stops, including a stop at Victory Station (which until the opening of DART's Green line in September 2009, was used only for special events). Not all trains are through trains - a number of trains either terminate or originate at the CentrePort/DFW Airport Station.
Diesel locomotives
TRE has a fleet of 9 locomotives.
There are seven EMD F59PH IV locomotives that were acquired from GO Transit. The original numbers for these were #525, #527-528 and #565-568. These were overhauled in late 2010 by the Norfolk Southern Railroad and RELCO Locomotive to meet EPA standards and renumbered 120-126.
There are two EMD F59PHI locomotives that were purchased from EMD. The numbers for these are #569 and #570.
Diesel multiple units
TRE owns 13 Budd Rail Diesel Cars, which were purchased from Via Rail Canada in 1993 and remanufactured by GEC Alsthom in Montreal. In 2010-11 ten cars were leased to DCTA for the A-train, but all have been returned and are in storage at TRE shops in Irving, TX.
Coaches
Train consist
Information from the Trinity Railway Express Train Facts page
Each non-RDC train includes at least one locomotive unit and one bi-level cab car. Typically, one or two additional coach cars are included between the locomotive and cab car. Each cab car (and thus each train) has a restroom and passengers may move between cars during the trip. The trip from Union Station to T&P Station takes just over an hour, with scheduled trip times ranging from one hour, three minutes to one hour, eleven minutes. Track improvements are currently underway which should offer an improvement in travel times by double-tracking certain stations and sections of the route. Currently, portions of the route are single-track, requiring eastbound and westbound trains to meet only at certain points and requiring some eastbound trains to hold for 5–7 minutes to wait for a westbound train to get to the passing area.