City leaders in Irving are miffed over a last-minute proposal to move a passenger train transfer center from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport to Grapevine.
The airport was set to be the connecting point for the proposed Cotton Belt Rail Line between Fort Worth and DART's proposed Orange Line.
The new proposal moves the center to a planned Park and Ride facility east of downtown Grapevine.
The city of Irving has already committed millions of dollars toward the project, including purchasing track and rail cars. Additionally, the said the transfer center's move would increase rider time to the airport while taking away business from the area.
"It’s throwing us off-kilter," Irving Councilman Rick Stopfer told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "We’ve committed $60 million in city funds. We hired a consultant to prove the ridership numbers of bringing the Orange Line through Irving to the airport property. The track has been purchased, the cars have been purchased, and the airport has committed to build the terminal station."
The Orange Line was originally planned to begin in downtown Dallas, move through Love Field, Las Colinas and then finally end at the airport. Passengers could then transfer and ride into Tarrant County all the way to southwest Fort Worth, or vice versa.
The lines were scheduled to be completed in 2013.
