Dallas Area Rapid Transit has received a $7.094 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration to help pay for its incoming fleet of new buses as the agency retires its older models. The award is part of more than $2 billion in federal funding distributed to 165 transit projects nationwide.
DART announced earlier this year that it is purchasing 476 new Gillig-built buses, all powered by compressed natural gas. The near-zero-emission design was a major factor in the agency qualifying for the grant. Gillig has already delivered the first units ahead of schedule, which means riders in North Texas will start seeing the new buses on routes by the end of December 2025. Full rollout is expected through 2027.
DART President and CEO Nadine Lee thanked federal transportation leaders and Texas lawmakers for helping secure the funding, noting that the early delivery of buses comes at an ideal time as the agency prepares for large crowds during next year’s FIFA World Cup events.
The new award adds to the $103 million DART previously received in federal grants, bringing total federal support for the bus purchase to more than $110 million and lowering the cost burden for DART and its member cities.
The 476-bus purchase is one part of Transform, DART’s ten-year, $2.5 billion plan to upgrade and modernize its entire system.
More information is available at transform.dart.org.
