Fort Worth spurns streetcar, fed funds
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-Chief
Seemingly adhering to its longstanding tradition of striving to be “anything but Dallas,” Fort Worth, Tex., Tuesday rejected further study on or pursuit of streetcars. The city had been awarded $25 million in federal funds to pursue the streetcar option.
In a 5-3 vote, Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief joined four other council members in voting against continuing to the final phase of the three-part study. “This has been a real struggle for me,” Moncrief said. “The bottom line is, many of us are still wrestling with concerns over funding.”
The $88 million project would have created a three-mile north-south line through downtown, served by three streetcars, estimated to draw 2,000 daily riders. Estimated operating costs of $1.6 million per year would have been covered by the Fort Worth Transportation Authority.
Observers had questioned whether Fort Worth was a logical choice for aiding streetcar development, given the city’s tenuous support of the mode. By contrast, the other cities offered a total of $105 million in federal funding last July included Charlotte, N.C. ($25 million), Cincinnati ($25 million), Fort Worth arch-rival Dallas ($4.9 million), and St. Louis ($25 million), all aggressively advancing their respective projects.
