The T's Effort To Expand Its Reach Has Begun
NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW) - Julia Ryan has been pulling into the North Park-and-ride to catch buses since it opened about a year ago.
"This is it," she said. "This is the farthest north The T goes right now."
Ryan commutes downtown four times a week by bus. Parking her car instead of dealing with the Alliance area traffic mess has made a big difference for Ryan.
"Now that the park-and-ride is here that stress, that traffic stress has gone down a lot," Ryan said.
But once Ryan gets to the North Park-and-Ride, she has to drive right back into the congestion around her home because there are no other transportation options.
"Getting around in my community without having to drive is something that I would like," Ryan said.
The T is kicking off a series of public workshops in the Alliance area to hear from people like Ryan. The T planners know the areas with transportation needs like Alliance and Hurst, for instance. But only three of the region's 41 cities have voted to collect a tax to pay for public transportation. And the task The T faces is getting enough ideas from the meetings to design a transportation system that would bring taxpayers on board.
"The challenge is how do we get some of the other communities and cities within Tarrant County and beyond to partner and member of the T," said Curvie Hawkins, one of The T's top planning executives.
Here is how to participate in future planning for The T:
April 14 - 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Tarrant County College, Alliance Corporate Training Center, 13600 Heritage Parkway Suite 100 Forth Worth.
April 14 - 5:30pm - 7:30pm Heritage Church of Christ, Family Center/Auditorium, 4201 Heritage Trace Parkway Fort Worth
April 15 - 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. AND 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. Intermodal Transportation Center, 1001 Jones St., Fort Worth
April 16 - 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. MLK Community Center, 5565 Truman Drive, Fort Worth
April 16 - 5: 30 p.m. -7:30 p.m. Southwest Regional Library, 4001 Library Lane, Fort Worth
The displays and presentation at each forum will be the same. Attendance is open to the public, and each facility is wheelchair accessible. For hearing, sight or language interpretive services contact The T's Human Resources Department at 817-215-8621, 48 hours in advance of the meetings.
Get more information or make a comment about The T Master Plan by visiting www.TMasterPlan.org.