DALLAS — Dallas Area Rapid Transit leadership said it will explore alternatives for crossings in North Dallas for the upcoming Silver Line rail project.
The decision comes after considerable pushback from residents and city council members over a proposal to have crossings at Hillcrest Road and another along Coit Road an approximate 20-30 feet above street level.
DART president and executive director Gary Thomas said the transit agency looked at raising the height of the rail line to lessen the impact to nearby street intersections during construction.
"Obviously the community feels very differently," Thomas said. "The council members that represent this area feel very differently so we’re going back and looking at other alternatives to see what we can come up with.”
District 12 councilmember Cara Mendelsohn called the proposal presented to the Dallas City Council Transportation and Infrastructure Committee "completely unacceptable."
"It's so interesting, with the D2 project (downtown Dallas subway plan) you're talking about reinvigorating space, exciting things happening – and then you get to this project and you're talking about innovative solutions," Mendelsohn said. "What I'm telling you is these are destructive solutions."
Thomas said DART will take several weeks to come up with proposals for the intersection crossings that can accomplish what residents and council members want and maintain the 10 to 30 million dollar savings DART sought with the less popular alternative.
"It's a serious issue," Thomas said. "It's very serious for the residents that are adjacent to the corridor and so we appreciate that and understand that."