A plan spearheaded by the North Central Texas Council of Governments to extend passenger rail service from southwest Fort Worth to Plano hit a snag in Grapevine this week.
The Grapevine City Council is not yet ready to support the plan -- or even to sign an agreement asking the council of governments to work on it, a requirement under state law if the project is to move forward.The council balked for good reason. Council members decided that they did not have enough information, City Manager Bruno Rumbelow said in a Thursday interview.That's the same problem this Editorial Board complained about in Sunday's newspaper. Sunday's editorial focused on a decision by the Regional Transportation Council, the council of governments' transportation planning body, to support spending $100 million in public money on passenger cars for the rail line.Those cars are designated for TEX Rail, the 37-mile Tarrant County portion of the line. The Fort Worth Transportation Authority, or the T, has worked for years on TEX Rail, which will link southwest Fort Worth with the north entrance to Dallas/Fort Worth Airport. About half the $960 million cost is expected to come from a proposed federal grant, with the rest funded by the T. Grapevine is contributing part of its sales tax revenue to that funding.The council of governments' plan would add 25 miles from Grapevine to Plano, and the combined 62-mile effort is referred to as the Cotton Belt Passenger Rail Project. The Grapevine-to-Plano segment depends on funding from a private entity, which would then take a share of revenue generated by development around stations along the line.That last part stumped the Grapevine council, Rumbelow said. The council wants to know more about how the finance mechanism would work and to determine whether it might drain development revenue that otherwise would come to the city.That's important information. The council was wise to withhold its support until it gets answers.Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
