Gas prices too high? Here are the public transit options in Fort Worth/Tarrant County
READ MORE
High gas prices got you down?
Here are ways to save, whether you take public transportation, join a supermarket gas savings program or even buy an electric or hybrid car.
Expand All
Thinking of trading that gas guzzler for an electric car or hybrid? Read this first.
Gas prices too high? Here are the public transit options in Fort Worth/Tarrant County
Save at the pump: Stores that earn you points and discounts on gasoline
Fact check: Do electric vehicles really save money? What about charging locations?
The Fort Worth area, like most cities in Texas, is dependent on cars. But with gas prices in Tarrant County surging, drivers who may have never considered public transportation before might be tempted to start using it.
There are several options for getting around town and saving a gallon or two of gas in the process.
Chad Edwards, Trinity Metro Vice President of Planning and Development, said Trinity Metro offers a variety of services including a bus system, TRE, TEXRail, ZipZones and Fort Worth Bike Sharing. The bus system, commuter trains and ZipZone vehicles are all in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and allow service dogs.
Trinity Metro Bus
The Trinity Metro Bus system runs seven days a week and offers several routes connecting parts of Fort Worth.
There are three main types of bus routes categorized by how often the bus shows up at each of its stops. The route frequencies are: 15 minutes, 30 minutes and 60 minutes.
For those spending a day in the Cultural District or on West 7th Street and Crockett Row, The Dash is a perfect option to get into downtown Fort Worth. The Dash, a red bus, comes by every 15 minutes; its route passes Will Rogers Memorial Center and Dickies Arena, goes over the Clear Fork Trinity River and heads into downtown by Sundance Square.
If you want to take a trip to the Stockyards, take route 15 from downtown, which comes by every 15 minutes. Not already in downtown? Trinity Metro offers 14 connections to get to downtown from different directions including the TEXRail train and The Dash.
From east Fort Worth near the town of Handley, take route 89 along East Lancaster Avenue, which frequents every 15 minutes, to come downtown. If you are traveling from Lake Worth into downtown, take route 46 along Jacksboro Highway, which frequents every 30 minutes.
To get to downtown from south Fort Worth near Far Southwest, Meadowcreek and west of Edgecliff Village, take route 6 along 8th and McCart avenues, which frequents every 15 minutes.
For a single bus ride, a ticket costs $2. One day tickets are $5.
For Xpress buses — routes ending with ‘X’ — tickets are $2.50.
A seven day bus pass is $25. Pay $80 for a month pass, or $800 for an annual pass.
Tickets can be purchased in exact cash on buses, with a card on ridetrinitymetro.org, or by cash, check, money order or credit card at a Trinity Metro customer service outlet.
Trinity Metro ZipZone
ZipZone is another option for riders to skip the preset route bus stops and get to a destination within specific service boundaries. Think of it like ride sharing for public transit.
There are four ZipZone service areas: Alliance, Mercantile, Southside and South Tarrant.
For all areas except Alliance, riders can use the ZipZone app on their smartphones to request a ride from a Trinity Metro ZipZone vehicle. For the Alliance service area, riders should have the Lyft app downloaded.
Prices for Mercantile, Southside and South Tarrant range from a flat rate no higher than $3, or free for those with a multi-ride Trinity Metro local ticket.
The hours are:
- Alliance: Weekdays, 4:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m.; weekends, 5:30-7:30 a.m. and 4-7:30 p.m.
- Mercantile: Weekdays, 5:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
- Southside: Sunday-Wednesday, 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Thursday-Saturday, 6 a.m.-midnight.
- South Tarrant: Weekdays, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.
Trinity Railway Express and TEXRail
Another alternative mode of transportation are the commuter trains Trinity Railway Express and the 27-mile TEXRail.
The Trinity Railway Express, or TRE, runs from downtown Fort Worth to downtown Dallas, making stops in Richland Hills, Hurst and Irving.
TEXRail runs from DFW International Airport to downtown Fort Worth and back, making stops in North Richland Hills and Grapevine.
Mary Peters, North Richland Hills Public Information Officer, said TEXRail is convenient and cost effective for North Richland Hills residents who commute to downtown Fort Worth or the airport. For commuters who can use TEXRail, Peters said, a monthly pass of $80 is less than a month’s cost of filling up at the pump for large SUVs and pickups.
“The train is also a great option for weekend outings and date nights, and for families headed to the airport for their spring and summer vacations,” she said.
For now, TEXRail has nine stops including three around downtown Fort Worth and two on the north side of DFW airport. Edwards said the Dallas Area Rapid Transit system, or DART, is working on a new commuter line, called the Silver Line, that will connect to TEXRail at DFW. According to a project map by DART, the Silver Line will make stops that include Carrollton, Addison and Plano.
A groundbreaking for the new commuter line took place in September 2019.
“In the next probably three years, you’re going to be able to get on a train in downtown Fort Worth and go all the way out to Plano,” Edwards said.
Fort Worth Bike Sharing
There are dozens of bike stands in and around downtown with bikes available for rides by the hour.
Pay at a bike station kiosk or by using the BCycle app on your smartphone. A day pass is $8 for unlimited rides in hour increments. Bikes can be returned at any Fort Worth Bike Sharing station. So whether you’re hanging around Sundance Square or visiting the Fort Worth Zoo, there’s no sweat to return your bike to a specific location.
A monthly pass is $20; six months is $50; and an annual pass is $100.
Walkability and public transit
Getting around town as a pedestrian is another way to save money on ride fares or gas. But depending on where you live, it can be inconvenient and inaccessible to get to your destination without a vehicle, and there may be limited to no alternative transportation options available.
A group called Walkable Arlington formed in 2021 with the purpose of advocating for walkability in the city. The group has held outreach events and connected with city leaders, council members and University of Texas at Arlington representatives to spread their message.
Walkable Arlington coordinator Tony Pham said suburban cities are built with the idea that residents will travel from one place to another solely in a car. Because of this, cities are spread out.
“When you build houses so far apart from each other, when you build roads so wide, you are inherently giving more space to cars and building on a scale that is so inhumane,” he said.
It’s easier to make a 15-minute walk to nearby conveniences in densely built cities, he said, and the need for a car is disincentivized. In comparison to suburban cities, a 15-minute walk from where Pham lives takes him only to more houses, as everything is spread out.
“Any other places I would want to walk to, it’s not useful for my walk that I can get out to — it’s never safe to be honest if I have to walk out here,” he said. “Cars would be driving down 40-50 mph — why would I want to walk there? It’s unsafe.”
Until public transit is offered to more cities and neighborhoods, Pham said, remote working may be the only answer for some people who want to save money on gas.
“Perhaps there is a way where we can always rely on the good-old fare system, where every single day a (bus) comes to pick us up and maybe all we have to do is pay 50 cents or just a dollar,” he said. “Not only that saves us gas, but that also saves us a whole lot of road rage on the road and pollution.”
This story was originally published March 18, 2022 at 12:00 AM.
