Dallas Area Rapid Transit has received a grant of $49,600 as part of the Federal Transit Administration's Human Trafficking Awareness and Public Safety Initiative.
A total of 24 organizations, including DART and four other transit-rail agencies, will each receive funding for projects to help prevent human trafficking and other crimes on public transportation.
"Since 2013, when we became one of the original transit agencies to sign the U.S. Department of Transportation's Transportation Leaders Against Human Trafficking pledge, DART has worked to spearhead local awareness efforts on human trafficking," Gary Thomas, DART President/Executive Director, said.
The FTA's Human Trafficking Awareness and Public Safety Initiative supports the Department of Transportation’s "Transportation Leaders Against Human Trafficking" initiative through transit-focused industry engagement, education, public awareness and outreach, research, and technical assistance to combat human trafficking in transit. It aims to maximize the transit industry’s collective impact to address human trafficking and other public safety concerns.
"As one of the first transit agencies to provide training to spot indicators of human trafficking and how to report it to every employee, DART knows the importance of these programs," Thomas said. "This funding provides us the opportunity to expand our public awareness efforts, provide training and education, and raise awareness among the traveling public along with the other members of our regional coalition of North Texas transportation entities."
