Downtown Rowlett station (previously Rowlett Park and Ride) is a DART light rail station in Rowlett, Texas. The station is located in Rowlett's historic downtown district, approximately 1⁄4 mile (0.40 km) south of Lakeview Parkway (SH 66) and 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) west of President George Bush Turnpike (SH 190).
Downtown Rowlett | |||||||||||
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 Downtown Rowlett station in July 2015 | |||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||
| Location | 5000 Martin Drive[1] Rowlett, Texas | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 32°54′15″N 96°33′48″W / 32.9042°N 96.5634°W | ||||||||||
| Owned by | Dallas Area Rapid Transit | ||||||||||
| Connections | Rowlett GoLink Zone (M-Sun), Southeast Garland GoLink Zone (M-Sun) Rockwall Dial-A-Ride (M-F) Hunt County Connection (M-F) | ||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||
| Parking | 750 spaces[1] | ||||||||||
| Bicycle facilities | 3 lockers,[2] 1 rack | ||||||||||
| Accessible | Yes | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
| Opened | May 22, 2000[3] (bus) December 3, 2012[4] (rail) | ||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||
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The station is the northern terminus of the Blue Line[1] and the main transfer point for Eastern Pilot GoLink, a microtransit service that serves Rowlett and southeastern Garland.[5] The station is also served by the Rockwall Dial-A-Ride service[6] and a shuttle to Greenville.[7][8]
History
editDallas Area Rapid Transit originally serviced the city of Rowlett through a park-and-ride lot at Christian City Church, located about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) east of the current station at the intersection of Lakeview Parkway and Dalrock Road. DART paid the church $10,000 per year to lease the site on weekdays.[9]
In 1997, DART announced the construction of a dedicated park-and-ride lot in downtown Rowlett,[10] which would allow for more streamlined bus routes.[9] The facility opened on May 22, 2000, as the Rowlett Park and Ride.[3] The opening of the facility coincided with the introduction of DART On-Call, a demand-response service for Rowlett neighborhoods east of the lot.[11]
The lot was located on a former Missouri–Kansas–Texas rail corridor which DART had purchased for a future extension of its light rail system.[10] On March 25, 2011, DART held a groundbreaking for the extension.[12] Testing began in April 2012,[13] and the completed extension opened on December 3, 2012.[4] In tandem with the opening, the facility was renamed to Downtown Rowlett station.
On September 30, 2016, Hunt County-based transit service The Connection announced the creation of a shuttle route between the station and Greenville.[8]
On May 7, 2018, DART implemented a parking permit system at the station. Certain segments of the lot are reserved on weekdays for drivers with a free permit indicating that they are a resident of one of DART's 14 member cities.[14] A similar system is in use at Parker Road station, though the two permits are not interchangeable.
References
edit- ^ a b c "Downtown Rowlett Station". Dallas Area Rapid Transit. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
- ^ "Bicycle Parking". Dallas Area Rapid Transit. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
- ^ a b Hartzel, Tony (May 21, 2000). "Commute Week: DART is revamping its trolley routes to connect riders to several additional spots in the central business district and to better serve north-south travelers". The Dallas Morning News. A. H. Belo Corporation. pp. 30A – via NewsBank.
- ^ a b Leszcynski, Ray (December 3, 2012). "Big day for DART as routes are extended to Rowlett, D/FW Airport". The Dallas Morning News. A. H. Belo Corporation. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved December 4, 2012.
- ^ "Eastern Pilot". Dallas Area Rapid Transit. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
- ^ "Connections to DART". STAR Transit. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
- ^ "Transportation". Senior Center Resources and Public Transit. Retrieved July 15, 2024.
- ^ a b Kellar, Brad (September 30, 2016). "The Connection starting Park & Ride service to Metroplex". Greenville Herald-Banner. Community Newspaper Holdings – via NewsBank.
- ^ a b Parish, Jeff (December 13, 2000). "DART streamlining bus route in Rowlett". The Dallas Morning News. A. H. Belo Corporation. pp. 1R – via NewsBank.
- ^ a b "DART announces location for Rowlett Transit Center". The Dallas Morning News. A. H. Belo Corporation. July 2, 1997. pp. 3M – via NewsBank.
- ^ Barber, Dan R. (May 31, 2000). "DART pleased with launch of Rowlett shuttle: Service lets riders call for pickup". The Dallas Morning News. A. H. Belo Corporation. pp. 1M – via NewsBank.
- ^ Green, Kenny (March 25, 2011). "DART breaks ground on Rowlett's light-rail station". Rowlett Lakeshore Times. American Community Newspapers.
- ^ Sikkel, Meghan; Leszcynski, Ray (April 26, 2012). "DART makes leisurely test run to Rowlett". The Dallas Morning News. A. H. Belo Corporation. pp. B6 – via NewsBank.
- ^ "Permit parking for DART service area residents coming to downtown Rowlett station". Rowlett Lakeshore Times. Star Local Media. March 23, 2018.
External links
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