Blue Line (Dallas Area Rapid Transit)

Blue Line
	Blue Line train at Downtown Rowlett
Overview
Type	Light rail
System	DART Light Rail
Status	operational
Locale	Dallas, Texas
Termini	Downtown Rowlett (north); UNT Dallas (south)
Stations	23
Operation
Opened	June 1996
Owner	DART
Operator(s)	DART
Technical
Line length	26.8 mi (43.1 km)
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Electrification	overhead catenary
Highest elevation	at grade, elevated, underground
Route map
	Red Line
	to Parker Road
	Baylor University Medical Center
	(special event only)
	Green Line to Buckner
	Orange Line to Lawnview (limited)
	Green Line to North Carrollton/Frankford
	Orange Line to DFW Airport
	Dallas Streetcar
	to Bishop Arts
	Red Line
	to Westmoreland
	Future extension to
	Dallas Southport Center
	All stations have step-free access

The Blue Line is a light rail line in the system of mass transit in Dallas, Texas (USA), operated by the Dallas Area Rapid Transit system. Along with the Red Line, it is one of the original modern rail lines in Dallas.

Route

The southern terminus of the line is currently at UNT Dallas in south Dallas at University Hills Blvd. just south of Camp Wisdom Rd. The line runs north, under the Dallas Convention Center and through downtown Dallas. After leaving Mockingbird, the line diverts to the northeast towards White Rock Lake. The line then goes north and then east into Garland, finally ending in Rowlett.

History

The rail line was part of the initial launch of DART's light rail service in 1996. At the time, the line only ran from Illinois to Pearl in the northeast corner of downtown. In 1997, the Blue Line was extended south to Ledbetter and was extended along the Red Line to Mockingbird in 1999, in preparation for the future extension to Garland.

On September 24, 2001, the Blue Line extended to White Rock, just northwest of White Rock Lake. On May 6, 2002, the Blue Line was extended to the LBJ/Skillman, just beyond LBJ Freeway (Interstate 635). It was extended to Downtown Garland on November 18, 2002, and to its current northern terminus, Downtown Rowlett, on December 3, 2012.[1]

DART's 2030 Transit System Plan, approved in October 2006, calls for the Blue Line to be extended south beyond Ledbetter to the University of North Texas at Dallas, as well as a branch along Bonnie View road to Interstate 20 and the SouthPort Intermodal Terminal. The plan also includes a new Lake Highlands station near Skillman Street and Walnut Hill Lane, which opened as DART's second infill station in December 2010.[2]

Stations

Daily Service

Listed from north to south

Station	Opened	Notes
Downtown Rowlett	2012	Northern terminus
Downtown Garland	2002
Forest/Jupiter	2002
LBJ/Skillman	2002
Lake Highlands	2010
White Rock	2001
SMU/Mockingbird	1997	Northernmost transfer for Red and Orange Lines
Cityplace/Uptown	2000	Transfer to M-Line Trolley
Pearl/Arts District	1996	Easternmost transfer for Green Line
St. Paul	1996	Transfer to M-Line Trolley (one block north)
Akard	1996
West End	1996	Westernmost transfer station for Orange and Green Lines
EBJ Union Station	1996	Transfer to Dallas Streetcar, Trinity Railway Express, and Amtrak
Convention Center	1996
Cedars	1996
8th & Corinth	1996	Southernmost transfer for Red Line
Morrell	1996
Illinois	1996
Kiest	1997
VA Medical Center	1997
Ledbetter	1997 (extended 2016)
Camp Wisdom	2016
UNT Dallas	2016	Southern terminus

Special Event Service

Deep Ellum (Also served by Green Line)
Baylor University Medical Center (Also served by Green Line)
Fair Park (Also served by Green Line)
Victory (Also served by Green Line, Orange Line)

South Oak Cliff extension

In October 2014, construction began for a 2.6-mile extension south from Ledbetter station to the University of North Texas at Dallas, adding two new stations to the line: Camp Wisdom and UNT Dallas. The extension opened for service on October 24, 2016.[3][4]

Deferred

Knox-Henderson Station in Uptown (Dallas)

Gallery

Southbound Blue Line train at Akard
Passengers at White Rock

References

DART Blue Line launches long-awaited rail service in Rowlett. Retrieved December 3, 2012.
The Dallas Morning News - DART green-lights 40 miles of new rail. Originally published October 25, 2006. Retrieved November 5, 2006.
Railway Track & Structures (October 21, 2016). "DART readies to open Blue Line extension to South Oak Cliff area". Simmons-Boardman Publishing Inc. Retrieved October 21, 2016.
Barrow, Keith (October 20, 2016). "Dallas inaugurates LRT Blue Line extension". International Railway Journal.

External links

Map of the Blue Line (to scale)
Full DART System Map

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[rowlettopens-1] DART Blue Line launches long-awaited rail service in Rowlett. Retrieved December 3, 2012.

[2] The Dallas Morning News - DART green-lights 40 miles of new rail. Originally published October 25, 2006. Retrieved November 5, 2006.

[3] Railway Track & Structures (October 21, 2016). "DART readies to open Blue Line extension to South Oak Cliff area". Simmons-Boardman Publishing Inc. Retrieved October 21, 2016.

[4] Barrow, Keith (October 20, 2016). "Dallas inaugurates LRT Blue Line extension". International Railway Journal.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART)
Services	Red Line Blue Line Green Line Orange Line Trinity Railway Express Dallas Streetcar Under construction Silver Line
Transit centers	Addison Glenn Heights J. B. Jackson Jr. Jack Hatchell Lake Ray Hubbard North Irving Northwest Plano Red Bird South Garland
Connecting bus services	Greyhound Lines (Fort Worth Central Station) Megabus (Pearl/Arts District Station) Trinity Metro (Fort Worth Central Station and T&P Station)
Connecting rail services	Amtrak (Union Station) A-train (Trinity Mills Station) MATA (Cityplace/Uptown Station) TEXRail (DFW Station)