Fort Worth seeks streetcar funding

Feds announce $130m in grants

Steve Hawley, Dec 22, 09.

Fort Worth is seeking $25 million in federal grants to help fund a proposed 20-mile streetcar network, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The article notes, “The idea has been popular among central-city residents and urban planners, but no one has figured out how to pay the $250 million price tag.”

Earlier this month, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced $130 million in federal funding for streetcar projects. The winning projects, which will be announced next year, will receive up to $25 million per project, meaning that at least six projects will receive funding. The Star-Telegram notes that the competition will be strong, and that Fort Worth is competing not only against cities across the nation, but also against three unnamed cities nearby.

City Council members also want to make sure that funding the project will not take away money from other transportation projects, such as road repairs and a planned commuter rail line. The proposed streetcar project would serve downtown Fort Worth, the cultural district, and the medical district, as well as other areas.

This summer, the city created a pilot project nicknamed “Molly the Trolley,” a downtown trolley-like bus route. Mayor Mike Moncrief told the Star-Telegram, “We have to start sometime in this [streetcar] project; obviously the downtown loop is the core. Putting Molly on tracks seems to be the next step.”

Developers and neighborhood groups are also supporting the project and have been working on a streetcar plan for more than a year.

(Photo credit: cacophony)