It appears to us that DART and the FTA never did the math.
Love Field passenger numbers are estimated to be 12,310,812 per year by the year 2020. If say only 15% take DART directly into or out of Love Field that would equate to 5,000 riders a day, this number does not even including the 8,201 estimated employees that may ride DART say at a factor of 10%, thus adding 820 x 2 for 1,640 additional riders a day to Love Field, for an estimated total of 6,640 riders per day in the year 2020.
DART estimated to FTA that the DFW Airport station will have 7,000 riders a day. DART justified the expense of 4.8 miles of additional tract to go into DFW Airport.
Now, if a Tunnel is say 5 times more expensive than an at grade track and Love Field is needing a 1 mile Tunnel and DFW needs 4.8 miles of track, the cost for each would be close to the same, for the DFW Airport connection as it would be for Love Field Tunnel (within 15-20%).
Dallas Mayor Miller in her conference call to the Love Field West Neighborhood DART Committee, on March 9, 2007 that took place for almost one hour, where Mayor Miller said the Spokesperson from FTA, Ms. Sherry Little, stated that because Love Field was a 32 gate airport and is now a 20 gate airport, the traffic will be less than it was in years past. This is the logic DART and the FTA are using to defeat the Tunnel. This logic appears to be totally flawed it almost appears based on ignorance.
At the Pre-Wright Amendment Love Field Airport there were 32 gates with only about 14-16 being used to fly to only five adjacent states out of US 48. After the removal of the WA we can fly to all 48 states DIRECT without landing first! So Love Field will go from maybe 14 gates somewhat used to a 20 gate airport fully used. From 5.5 million passengers to an estimated 12.3 million passengers in 2020.
DART's proposal to FTA was based on an estimated 1,200 riders direct to Love Field a day. Our estimates are a conservative number of 6,640 riders a day direct to Love Field by the year 2020. That is only 6-8 years after the completion of the DART Green Line.
DART and the FTA may have won the day, however they should not be seen as accurate in their numbers. DART direct to Love Field appears to now be a dead project because FTA says Dallas will be in breech of their contract if they make such a change and all parties my have to forfeit the $700 million from the FTA.
What about the breech of contract by DART in their Interlocal Agreement No. 7 dated March 4, 2004 between DART and Dallas saying in section 1. 02 FULL EFFORTS? In this contract DART and Dallas signed Interlocal Supplemental Agreement No. 7 stating in Section 1.02 “Full Efforts. CITY and DART agree to each use their full efforts to achieve the implementation of the Tunnel Option.” Both DART and Dallas are to both use Full Efforts it implement the Tunnel at Love Field. In our opinion it never happend on DARTs part. DART never used Full Efforts to get the Tunnel to Love Field, it appears they did just the opposite. Mayor Miller has said DART fought it all the way from every level, from the staff to the Board to the Director. At every level Dart fought the Tunnel into Love Field. Where is the enforcement of the breech of that contact?
We as a city will have to go back in 2012 or 2014, after the FTA fully funded grant is funded, and seek the Tunnel directly into Love Field when DART and FTA have no more excuses and the present funding is out of the way.
Here are the numbers again-
Estimated Passengers in 2020 at Love Field is 12,310,812
Estimated employees at Love Field is 8,201
Estimate that 15% of the passengers will ride DART into Love Field each day.
Estimate that 10% of the employees will ride DART into Love Field Each day, both ways.
This equates to over 6,640 riders each day on DART to Love Field when DART and the FTA used the assumption of 1,200 riders a day.
The other assumption DART made was they were keeping BOTH stations, the one on Denton Drive 2/3 of a mile from the Love Field Termial and the station directly under the Love Field Terminal.
With DART proposing two stations, when only one is needed, it kills the numbers with the riders delay time factor alone. One would expect good designers to understand this.
Was it the intention of the DART design, of going direct into Love Field, to fail from the start?
If it was, they succeeded.
It is estimated the dollars that will be spent on a "People Mover" will be as great or even greater than the dollars to take DART direct, via a Tunnel, into Love Field and thus giving Dallas a World Class Inter-City Airport!
DARTs design does not get the 6 million in North Texas directly into Love Field and it fails to protect the citizens of the Love Field West Neighborhood by closing their streets and exposes their 1,500 children to adjacent trains moveing at 64 mph throught the entrance of their neighborhood.
It appears to be a bad design all the way around and there is no accountablilty for its failure.
You may want to voice your concerns using the links on the Home Page to the Dallas City Council and the US House and Senate. Maybe we should add a link to our Texas House and Senate as well. Look for future reports!
Thank you for your intrest!
www.DallasNeedsLove.com