Dallas Area Rapid Transit is making the wrong decision by constructing the #SilverLine, considering its impact on the nearby residents.

This regional project is supposed to run between DFW Airport and Plano. People would be able to take the Silver Line to connect with TEXRail at DFW North, Denton County Transportation Authority’s A-train, and other systems including DART’s Green line. Some of the areas serviced would be Terrant County and downtown Fort Worth.

Although the project implementation is already underway, DART really needs to consider the project's effects on the residents and go back to the drawing board. The train project has outraged many nearby Dallas residents. They have seen considerable pushback from residents and council members over some of the crossings, especially at Hillcrest Road and the other along Coit Road about 20-30 feet above street level. 

Cara Mendelsohn, District 12 councilmember, has said of the Silver Line: “it’s really hard to fight a railroad… so, use your collective voice and make things happen. I’m with you. This is not a great thing for the neighborhood.” Homeowners fear the arrival of dozens of noisy trains on the line, and the possibility of freight trains is not a comforting thought.

Gary Thomas, who was the President and Executive Director of DART at the time, responded to residents’ concerns with "the council members that represent this area feel very differently so we’re going back and looking at other alternatives to see what we can come up with.”

Another fear from neighbors is that their land may be taken to pave the way for constructing the Silver Line. According to the plan, there is a lot of concern from the residents that more property may still be needed. According to DART spokesman Gordon Shattles, “there are actually 72 properties that we’ve identified and the bulk of those, over 55 of them, are actually partial, small slivers of land and the corner of someone’s property.” Homeowners right beside the tracks in Dallas are a worried lot because they don’t know which pieces, or how much of those pieces will be taken to serve the purpose.

Despite the loss of land, it is quite unfortunate that Texas law does little to protect landowners. In a very real sense, landowners are suffering because of the construction. DART should abort the Silver Line and reexamine their plans to ensure that residents and business owners are not negatively impacted.