Trinity Metro

Trinity Metro is a transit agency located in and serving the city of Fort Worth, Texas and its suburbs in surrounding Tarrant County, part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. Since 1983, it was previously known officially as the Fort Worth Transportation Authority (FWTA), and branded itself as The T. As of January 29, 2018 the Board of Directors has voted to rebrand bus services as Trinity Metro, replacing the previous and long standing name. In, the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of.

Trinity Metro primarily operates the region's bus service, and TEXRail, a hybrid rail system connecting downtown Fort Worth with DFW Airport via Northeast Tarrant County. The agency is also involved in the operation of the Trinity Railway Express (TRE) commuter rail line between from downtown Fort Worth and downtown Dallas in partnership with Dallas Area Rapid Transit and the North Texas Xpress (Route 64) express bus service in partnership with Denton County Transportation Authority.

History
Through the early 1970s, bus transit services in Fort Worth were provided by City Transit Company, a private enterprise. Starting in 1974, the city's Traffic Engineering Department began coordinating bus operations. In 1978, the city established the Fort Worth Department of Transportation, which took over public transit operations. These operations included the City Transit Service (CITRAN) and the Surface Transportation Service (SURTRAN, a service jointly owned between the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth, shuttling passengers to and from DFW from stops in Dallas (including Dallas Union Station), Fort Worth and Arlington),  with transportation services for the handicapped (MITS) being added in 1979.

On November 8, 1983, voters approved formation of The T. To finance the system, voters levied a half-cent sales tax. The CITRAN, SURTRAN, and MITS services were folded into the new agency, along with carpool and vanpool coordination.

The agency's first addition came on November 5, 1991 when the small suburb of Lake Worth voted 344–206 in favor of joining the T. That prompted three more elections on May 2, 1992 when Blue Mound, Forest Hill and Richland Hills had the issue of joining the agency on the ballot. Blue Mound and Richland Hills voted in favor while Forest Hill declined the measure nearly 2–1.

The T saw its first departure when voters in Lake Worth approved a pullout in September 2003. Service withdrawal became effective on March 21, 2004. Lake Worth had previously tried to pull out in 1996, but that measure failed. On November 8, 2016, Richland Hills residents voted to withdraw from the agency's services. FWTA's final day of service in Richland Hills was November 23, 2016.

In 2001, the FWTA saw its cooperation efforts with DART pay off as the Trinity Railway Express reached downtown Fort Worth. The other end of the line terminates in downtown Dallas.

The TRE commuter line has a daily ridership of 9,100 and is the thirteenth most-ridden commuter rail system in the country.

On August 24, 2016, Trinity Metro broke ground on TEXRail, the second commuter rail project undertaken by the agency, and the first built solely by Trinity Metro. The rail line was initially envisioned to run along the existing Cotton Belt Railway Corridor from DFW airport to the Fort Worth Stockyards, head South along Union Pacific owned track to the Fort Worth Central Station, and continue along Fort Worth & Western Railroad tracks to Benbrook Lake. As of the FWTA 2015 master plan, citing "project costs and other considerations", the agency decided to build the 27 mile Minimum Operable Segment (MOS) between downtown Fort Worth and DFW Terminal B. The other considerations likely included stalled negotiations with Fort Worth & Western, Union Pacific, and DART, over securing right of way for TEXRail trains. The MOS included 2 new stations in Fort Worth, one in Grapevine, two at DFW Airport, and 3 potential stations in North Richland Hills and Haltom City. The three potential stations were conditional on either city joining the Trinity Metro service area, which requires imposing a half-cent sales tax to help fund the agency. North Richland Hills joined Trinity Metro in 2018, while Haltom City never did, as a result, two stations were built in North Richland Hills, and the Haltom City station was not. The MOS was completed, and TEXRail began service between downtown Fort Worth and DFW airport on January 10, 2019, with free rides until January 31, 2019 to " give everyone an opportunity to ride".

On January 29, 2018, the transit agency's board of directors voted to rebrand FWTA/The T as Trinity Metro, and revealed a new logo, that depicts three triangles forming the letter "M" in its negative spaces. The name change officially took place on March 23, 2018 on its website and social media presence.

Member cities
At its creation in 1983, Trinity Metro, then known as the Fort Worth Transit Authority, consisted of only one city, Fort Worth. In the following years, three small communities joined Trinity Metro: Lake Worth, Blue Mound, and Richland Hills. Only Blue Mound remains a member city.

Joining Trinity Metro requires the new member to levy a 1⁄2¢ sales tax. Because the state of Texas caps the total sales tax for a municipality at 2¢, many municipalities are unable to join.

Trinity Metro allows cities to gain service through interlocal agreements. Grapevine and North Richland Hills made agreements in 2006 and 2016, respectively, to obtain stations on the then-planned TEXRail line. While these two cities are usually listed as member cities, including by Trinity Metro itself, they do not pay the 1⁄2¢ sales tax and all non-TEXRail public transit is provided by third parties.

Rail
TEXRail, opened in 2018, is a hybrid rail service connecting downtown Fort Worth and DFW Airport. The train travels through northeast Tarrant County with four stops in Fort Worth, two stops in North Richland Hills and three stops (including at the airport) in Grapevine.

Trinity Railway Express, opened in 1996, is a commuter rail service connecting downtown Fort Worth and downtown Dallas. The train travels on a former Rock Island throughway with four stops in Fort Worth, one stop in Richland Hills, two stops in Irving, and three stops in Dallas. The line is jointly operated with Dallas Area Rapid Transit; Trinity Metro manages the stations in Tarrant County (from T&P Station to CentrePort/DFW Airport).

Bus routes
, Trinity Metro operates twenty-seven regular bus routes, six Xpress/Limited routes, and four specialty services. The bus network travels throughout Fort Worth, with its main hub at Fort Worth Central Station. The system has three additional transfer locations and five park-and-rides.

Prior to Fort Worth Central's opening in 2001, the main downtown transit hub centered around bus lines all converging along the Houston/Throckmorton corridor, with northbound service on Throckmorton Street and southbound service on Houston Street.

Trolley Routes
Molly the Trolley is a free shuttle route which loops around downtown Fort Worth. It stops at major downtown destinations such as Sundance Square, the Fort Worth Convention Center, and the Fort Worth Water Gardens, as well as Fort Worth Central station. The route uses dark green buses.

The Dash is a shuttle route which travels from Fort Worth Central station to the Museum District, which includes Will Rogers Memorial Center, Dickies Arena, and the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History. The route uses red-colored electric buses.

On-Demand
Launched in July 2019, On-Demand (formerly ZIPZONE) is a curb-to-curb microtransit service operated in partnership with Via Transportation. The service allows riders to book trips on-demand (using an app or phone number) so long as each trip starts and ends within specially designated zones. Travel between zones is not permitted, though some zones overlap. The service costs $1-3 per ride and is included with multi-ride passes.

Trinity Metro previously offered a separate curb-to-curb service in the Alliance neighborhood, which offered a complimentary Lyft ride through a promotional code. The service was replaced with a standard On-Demand zone on July 15, 2024.

Fort Worth Bike Sharing
Operated in association with BCycle, Fort Worth Bike Sharing is a short-term bike rental service. Users check out electric bikes from docking stations across Fort Worth and ride them for up to two hours. This service is not included with any Trinity Metro tickets, though bike-exclusive memberships, which allow unlimited rides for their duration, are available.

VANPOOL
VANPOOL is a service which allows groups of five to fifteen people to collectively rent an SUV or van for travel to and from work, with prices varying based on the type of vehicle and distance traveled by each rider. Trinity Metro covers the cost of registration, insurance, fuel, and maintenance, though they do not cover tolls.

The service is open to riders in eleven counties: Dallas, Ellis, Erath, Hood, Johnson, Navarro, Palo Pinto, Parker, Somervell, Tarrant, and Wise. A similar service operated by DCTA operates in the rest of the Metroplex.

ACCESS Paratransit
ACCESS Paratransit (originally Mobility Impaired Transit Services, or MITS) is an ADA-compliant paratransit service for riders with disabilities that prevent them from using standard Trinity Metro services. The service allows eligible patrons to schedule curb-to-curb transportation to any location in Blue Mound, Fort Worth, or River Oaks.

Current

 * 1 – Hemphill
 * 2 – Camp Bowie
 * 4 – East Rosedale
 * 5 – Evans Ave/TCC South
 * 6 – 8th Ave/McCart
 * 11 – North Beach/Mercantile Center
 * 12 – Samuels/Mercantile Center
 * 15 – Stockyards/North Main
 * 16 – Alliance Town Center/Mercantile Center Station
 * 21 – Boca Raton
 * 22 – Meadowbrook
 * 23 – TCC Northeast Campus/TRE
 * 24 – Berry Street
 * 25 – Miller/E. Seminary
 * 28 – Mansfield Hwy/Sierra Vista
 * 29 - West Seminary/Hulen Mall
 * 33 - Felix/Oak Grove
 * 45 – TCC Northwest/Angle Ave/Azle Ave
 * 46 – Jacksboro Highway
 * 51 – Bryant Irvin
 * 52 – Hulen
 * 53 – University
 * 54 – Riverside/Sylvania
 * 55 – Handley
 * 72 – Hemphill/Sycamore School Rd
 * 89 – SPUR/East Lancaster
 * 91 – Normandale/North Side Station

Xpress/Limited routes

 * 30 – CentrePort Circulator (Amon Carter Loop / East Loop / West Loop)
 * 31 – TRE Link (CentrePort/DFW Airport station–DFW Airport Terminal B station)
 * 61X – Normandale Xpress
 * 63X – North Park & Ride Xpress
 * 65X – South Park & Ride Xpress
 * 66X – Candleridge/Altamesa Xpress

Trolleys/Special services

 * 991 – Juror Shuttle
 * LL – Burnett Plaza Lunch Line
 * Molly the Trolley
 * The Dash

Eliminated

 * 1N North Main (now 15)
 * 1S Hemphill (now 1)
 * 2W Camp Bowie
 * 2E East Lancaster (now 89 SPUR)
 * 3 Riverside/TCC South
 * 7 University Drive
 * 8 Riverside/Evans (Sunday Only)
 * 9 Ramey/Vickery
 * 10 Bailey
 * 16 Downtown Trolley
 * 16 Rosedale/Montgomery
 * 17 Central Avenue
 * 20 Handley
 * 23 Mercantile
 * 26 Ridgmar Mall/Normandale
 * 27 Como/Ridgmar Mall
 * 28 Diamond Hill
 * 29 TCU Frog Shuttle (earlier TCU Circulator)
 * 31 Sycamore School Road
 * 31 Stonegate/TCU Shuttle
 * 32 Bryant Irvin
 * 40 Bridgewood
 * 41 Richland Hills Rider Request
 * 42 Southeast Rider Request
 * 43 Town Center Rider Request/Fixed
 * 44 Central/Azle Ave
 * 44 Alta Mesa Rider Request
 * 45 Forest Park/Mistletoe Heights
 * 46 Lake Worth Rider Request
 * 47 Northsider Rider Request
 * 48 Northside (originally Samuels)
 * 57 Como/Montgomery
 * 60X Eastside Xpress (Temporarily Suspended)
 * 62 Summerfields Express
 * 64 East Lancaster Express
 * 64X North Texas Xpress (Denton)
 * 67X TCC Southeast Campus XPress
 * 67 Dallas Express
 * 67 Lamar Blvd. Park & Ride
 * 68 Park Springs Park & Ride
 * 69 Alliance Express
 * 71 Forest Hill
 * 82 Southeast Zone Rider Request
 * 83 Southeast Zone Rider Request
 * 90 Long
 * 111 Bell Helicopter Shuttle

Labor relations
From November 6, 2006 through November 11, 2006, around 100 of FWTA's union workers went on strike, citing the agency's policy regarding termination of employees who had used up their short-term disability benefits. This represented about a third of the workers represented by Teamsters Local 997. Service continued with delays the next morning by non-striking drivers, and FWTA began advertising for replacement drivers. During the dispute, bus rides on FWTA were free, and the agency announced that monthly pass holders will receive a 25% discount on their December passes. By Friday, replacement workers and other drivers willing to cross the picket lines had restored service to normal levels.

FWTA offered a new contract proposal late in the week, which was rejected on Saturday by a vote of 37 to 21. But because less than half of the 155 union members voted, a 2/3 majority of the vote was required to reject the contract. That would have required 39 of the 58 votes, so the contract was declared "accepted".

Service on the Trinity Railway Express was not affected, as the rail line's employees work under a different contract.

Nine years earlier, a four-day strike in 1997 shut down 75% of The T's service.