A 50-mile drive is no joke, and that’s the distance between Fort Worth and Plano. Soon however, locals will be able to take the train between the two cities according to a Star Local article from December 28th. In it they say:
“Dallas Area Rapid Transit — also known as DART — has begun construction on a project known as the Silver Line. The Silver Line will run along the old Cotton Belt freight rail line through Plano, Dallas, Carrollton, Richardson, Addison and Coppell before arriving at DFW Airport. There, passengers will be able to connect with TEXRail, a commuter line that opened in 2019 and connects DFW Airport to multiple stations in Grapevine, North Richland Hills and Fort Worth. The Silver Line is scheduled for completion in 2023, and construction has begun.”
Plano has just received 16,000 extra feet of rail for construction according to a Dallas Morning News article from December 28th. In it they say:
“Sixteen thousand feet of rail — 200 sections, each one 80 feet long — recently arrived in Plano for DART’s Silver. The rails were delivered Dec. 18 on a special train from Steel Dynamics of Indiana to an area east of Shiloh Road, according to the city. The shipment is in addition to 1,600-foot sections of rail that were delivered in November. DART’s Silver Line project is a 26-mile, $1.2 billion east-west commuter project that crosses seven cities and will connect Plano to DFW International Airport. The other cities are Grapevine, Coppell, Dallas, Carrollton, Addison and Richardson. The Silver Line will also interface with the Red and Orange lines in Richardson and Plano, the Green Line in Carrollton and the Orange Line at DFW Airport. Construction began a little more than a year ago and previous work has included embankments, bridge structures and retaining walls.”
It looks like construction is going smoothly and plans are on track for this exciting new public project.