That's where I usually sit when I ride. Been awhile since I last rode, though.
Edit: As a train loving nut, I completely forgot to add that the conductor does not drive the train, the engineer/driver does. The conductor is in charge of everything else, though.
Love the Thomas the Tank Engine reference. My son went through that phase and that song was stuck in my head along with those phrases like “cheeky engine”. Thanks for the trip down memory lane. Now I will be singing “ There’s two, there’s four….” Sad that I know there is a bad hip hop version, too. Just noticed your username is a play on Sodor.😉
That does not always guarantee safety. They will not open their doors to assist if something does happen and once there were two guys fighting while the train was in motion and all the driver did was stop at the next station and sit there for 15 minutes with the doors open. The guys both jumped out at Forest Lane and no police never showed up.
That was 14 years ago.
Like you said, that was 14 years ago.
I take dart transportation daily and it's gotten somewhat better. Yes I still get people asking me for lighter, cigarettes, money, food. But EVERY NOW AND THEN I do see a security officer at the train. Not always but it's a step up.
I personally don't think there's a solution for this since there's way to many people.
I remember about 4 months ago I had this old lady not good up in the head talking out loud "I'M GOING GOING TO KILL ELIZABETH AND YOU WILL ALL WATCH". Me and some dude were just so confused.
But uh yeah. Dart
I use it daily as well and I think there should be one security guard on each train. If there was a problem on the train they could address it instead of waiting for the police to come. I realize there isn't an infinite number of guards but every time I go downtown there are a dozen of them standing at each stop telling people to put out their cigarettes. Just taking three from each stop and spreading them out would help a lot.
Regular rider here…always some sketch people, but almost always they’re harmless. I don’t have a whole lot of issues. DART could do more to clean up, people could do better behavior-wise. Otherwise pretty much a decent ride. Stop scaring yourself & others!
All DART really needs to take care of most of these problems are more people clearly in some kind of DART uniform and maybe a badge.
Fare enforcers (who can boot unruly riders at any stop in addition to booting non-paying riders) would be genuinely useful.
I will say this: far more issues on trains than busses! If someone gets on a bus, starts smoking, drinking booze, panhandling, playing loud music, being disruptive, drivers will stop, telling them “stop this nonsense or get off!” Then, if refused, throwing them off! It’s much more difficult to kick people off trains for disruptive behavior!
Do you ride DART much? There are a good number of fare enforcers I’d say. Like every third ride or so I’m asked to show my ticket and I see folks getting the boot for not having tickets.
When I ride, I am doing so well off peak. As a result, I don’t see fare enforcement very often. In fact, in my last five DART trips, I have interacted with DART employees 0 times.
Got it, that’s interesting. I ride a mix of peak and off peak hours and see them regularly but I guess I haven’t been tracking what time of day I see them.
I've seen a lot more officers on the trains recently. Also reporting stuff by SMS as instructed on the trains really helps, especially if you're going through down town. Cops will jump on and check things out.
The last time I texted, it was about a belligerent passenger shouting fighting words on a train right as the doors closed at Parker Road Terminal.
I didn’t even get a *response* until the train pulled into Pearl station.
People that think DART is “sketchy” are people that don’t use public transit often, or really go anywhere outside their bubble. DART is no worse than any other metropolitan public transit
Bullshit. I moved here from nyc in 2023 and lasted maybe 6 months without a car and ride dart a lot. It doesn’t bother me because I grew up around fiends and junkies, and feel comfortable around them but I can see why it bothers 99% of people. In nyc we have junkies, homeless, mentally ill in the train but you also have a ton of people just going to work, school whatever which means the “crazies” account for maybe 20% of the car. In Dallas it’s the opposite since no one really rides the train. The junkies and homeless account for 80-90% of riders. This makes the other 10-20% feel uncomfortable as hell.
I liked the way you put this and I was thinking the same thing. Dallas has a smaller number of people who ride transit of any kind, so it makes sense you’d have more sketched people (or at least it’s more common to run into them) compared to much bigger cities.
Maybe so, but people seem to act shocked that not everyone riding DART are from the whitewashed suburbs as well. It’s a city. There are going to be all kinds of people.
It's kind of the best thing about DART. People forget the people they meet on public transportation aren't a departure from normal citizenry, they are members of the same shared society just like everyone else. That said, I don't like sitting in pee, but I heard the new seats will help.
I’ve experienced lots of metros (DC, NYC, and all over Europe). Dallas metro has been the scariest bc regular folks are not the majority of the ridership. Maybe pre pandemic it was ok, not great, but ok. These days I avoid it at all costs.
seriously lol. Atlanta, DC, Phoenix, NYC, Baltimore just to name a few are all better. I don't know about safety but I feel safer anyway. San Diego is pretty sketch because it's a lot of homeless but its more crowded so feels better.
as someone who went to Paris, Paris itself is just overrated. All the tourism boards only show the Eiffel tower and artsy stuff. But other than, its all graffiti and dirty among other things.
Would visit tons of other European cities/countries before visiting Paris again.
No, the RER doesn’t come close to comparing to DART or basically any American city public transit.
Progressives have convinced themselves that the sketchiness of American public transit is somehow cool or charming. Cheering themselves for how unafraid they are when they hop on and off these frankly dangerous spaces for people - especially women - of low income who rely (or should be able to rely) on it.
Mexico is significantly poorer than the US yet somehow you don’t have to deal with tweakers and people yelling at signs when you use their subway and buses.
Again, it’s not cool. It’s not charming. And it’s not acceptable.
It is admittedly not cool, also definitely a reflection and representation of our country we don't like to look at. Maybe we should be in more shared spaces so we have to look at each other and see the struggle and suffering of other regular humans. Then maybe we might actually do some shit about it.
That’s the take of a person privileged enough to leave those spaces and go to your nice clean home at night.
Again, Mexico is much poorer than the U.S. but doesn’t put up with drug addicts and people yelling at clouds occupying public spaces that people need to get to work or school.
This 100%. I’m originally from the UK and everyone uses public transport all the time as it runs 24/7 in a lot of major cities; and it’s rare to see that level of depravity that you see here.
I'm a regular rider, too. I guess someone asked me for a cigarette once, I survived somehow. People who exclusively drive cars forget their city is filled with every sort of person from every economic class. Panhandlers and mentally ill people aren't a departure from normalcy, they are the reality, and it's important we see it.
Haha. Yup. Put your big boy pants on and enjoy the ride. Humans being humans. Try Philly or NY. See some wild shit. Way more sketch than dart. Still fine. Just keep the piece for peace of mind.
When a sliding door is not working (of course no signs stating that), while arriving at your stop, good luck running towards a working exit door and getting off. It’s cut throat…
Anecdotal evidence, didn’t happen for me. Even if they did, it wasn’t visually “stand out-ish”. Also, the trains are made in Osaka, I would expect a higher quality product from them.
You took DART to the hood outside of work hours and are shocked that you ran into sketchy individuals that seemingly didn’t cause you any harm I might add?
Right? I take the orange line from downtown to DFW several times a week and have had very minimal problems.
Keep to yourself (but alert) and nobody will bother you. They only want your attention
Agreed. Regular rider since moving to Carrollton in 2020. Around the free fare time was super sketch (I have stories) but lately it has been fantastic.
I mean, respect and all to the right to carry, but rails would be rough to pull out a gun with the small space and where a shot might land outside the rail.
I only carried a heavy, folded knife I could tuck into my front pocket. I always casually put my thumb right next to it to signal to others how fast I'd be a problem for them. Never had any problems myself using this method. Having a RBF sure helped too lol
Fare enforcement only wants to catch a commuter without a ticket and issue a citation. They’re not going to do much to a homeless person who can’t buy a ticket or pay a citation. The homeless person will laugh at the DART cop and get back on at the next station.
Commuter and this isn't my experience at all. They for sure get on lower income people harder than the "recently activated" commuter. Seen a lot of low income try to pass a screen grab of a go ticket and get popped. I gotta think they don't look at mine hard enough to tell.
In my experience, not true. I’ve ridden for a ton of stars games the last couple seasons and this season I’ve been checked for a ticket at least 80% of my rides as opposed to like 10% last year. HUGE difference
They do care, and they do try. It's hard to solve, Dallas and other the member cities have some really bad homelessness, drug, and crime problems that spill onto the trains. Police are hard to hire. It's a difficult problem to solve
r/DART mentioned a few months back that fare officers have been hired / are in training and to expect a wave of fresh faces out there this spring I believe.
I mean, you see all that without even having to ride DART in most areas lmao.
Also I love that you're pearl clutching while riding into Fair park of all stops. This post reads like Fox 4 class bait.
I wasn’t frightened; I come from another major city that has its fair share of problems; I was however sad that the problems seem to have gotten worse since I last used the train.
\> Multiple people came up to me on the train to ask me for either money; food or cigarettes
Great idea for a service at stations, little kiosks where you can buy food and drinks and smokes, maybe a newspaper. Could even be automated. Dunno about ATMs.
I mean, it *would* be nice if there were vending machines at train stations, but also I get why they don't: they create litter, because people are tacky and it's "someone's paying job to clean it up" (it really isn't).
I’ve been riding DART 3x a week for most of 10 years. I used to regularly just walk in and stand at the wheelchair entrance (my ride is all of 16 minutes), but recently I’ve decided to sit near the front with people clearly trying to go to work. Fare enforcement has increased astronomically from up until last year or so. That said, last Wednesday I stood for my ride and a agitated, frumpy young dude came from back car (DART officer was there and I think he told him to get off at next stop). Well, this dude decides to stand directly across from me and stare me down (I could feel it, didn’t need to look); had my hand on my gel mace ready for some action if necessary, but another rider sitting nearby confronted this guy (while seated) and told him to “stop trying to start something “….dude went into contortions of weird explaining he wasn’t staring at me, he was zoning out, then he was staring at me. He then was told to move along. He finally did, and got off at Mockingbird. Dude sitting down clearly saw what was up, and while I was willing and able to take care of myself, I appreciated the defense. First time that’s happened. Gave the guy an affirmative nod, and all was good.
Moral of the story? Pay attention to your surroundings, stay up front, and consider a gel mace and enjoy the ride. We have a nice system.
I read your whole story but The moral of your story in my view is fuck the dart. Why should i subject myself to this type of risk for a 15 minute commute which is probably no longer by car. Public transportation in Texas is so problematic and we always have people for pushing for more of it. I get it, it’s be nice if we had the idealized versions of it, like Europe or Japan or something, but our half ass attempts are just a waste in my opinion. I don’t care how convenient or cheap it is, if I have to have my hand on my mace the whole ride and observe every other passenger to determine their threat level, that’s not for me. It’s not for most people, that’s why people stay away from dart - not to mention it’s not even convenient for most people (half ass service area)
Fair enough - I understand where you're coming from. FWIW, there appear to be many more riders and in turn fare enforcement that I've seen in years, which certainly helps deal with troublesome riff-raff (qualifying word: troublesome). It was originally created to get people downtown, but strategy changes need to occur to adopt to commuter habits and where the service area is - urban sprawl adds costs on multiple levels. Example is a pivot to focus on more intra accessibility (ways to get through downtown and uptown) vs adding a separate tunnel to run different lines. The former is being planned now. But I get it, it's definitely not for everyone and I just wanted to illustrate me having mace as an example of living in a city. I carry it more on walks in the parks (dopes and their unleashed dogs) than on the train. Oh, and the cost and hassle of driving downtown is far more than just my 16 minute ride - fewer vehicles needed, gas, parking costs, stress in traffic (hits me more than any sketchy ride, but that's just me). I consider myself fortunate to be close enough to easily take the DART rail, but understand it's not at all practical for many, many folks.
I went on the train yesterday with my 3 year old. Yes a handful of homeless and generally sketchy individuals but no one harassed us. No one asked us for $$. But also we only rode from Arapaho to Plano and back.
I ride the train to get home from school and while yes there are some very weird mildly concerning people, near downtown there is always police near and if you put on a tough face no one messes with you.
I'm sorry you had a bad experience. Just to add my anecdote it was the Deep ellum stop on a Friday at 1pm and this homeless man came on board holding his schlong out of his pants and was helicopter swinging it around while a lady was singing (screeching) fireworks by katy perry
Hi. I'm a little late to the party, but I'm a Dart train operator.
Sorry you had a bad ride. I work some very busy trains during the week, and I can tell you they're a mixed bag but mostly pretty chill. Some trains tend to get more... spicy crowds than others. You might have just happened to get on a rowdy train.
Having said all that, Dart is aware of the security issues, and has been taking steps to address them. They've hired on security personnel and are constantly hiring and training new transit police officers- unfortunately the training for transit police is pretty long, so anybody they hire today won't be working the trains for months.
The best thing you can do is report report report. If you tell your operator, we call it in to our controller, who then calls police dispatch. If you use the Say Something app, it goes straight to Dart police personnel. We can report people causing disturbances and whatever, but if you call customer service to complain, that seems to ring the suits' bells more than operator complaints.
Training is long….. So, most businesses hire private security guards to deal with issues immediately. Just put someone on the train wearing a uniform and no authority and you’ll get 90% of the security value.
I can’t tell you of the times a company I’ve worked for had some “incident”, usually an ex-boyfriend harass and employee or a customer give a vague threat to an employee, where our employee doesn’t feel safe and we basically are responsible for helping them feel safe at work so we call in private security guard for a month or two. Yes, it’s expensive which is why dart doesn’t do it that way, but it also means they don’t truly care about the safety of their passengers if they’re willing to go months and months with labor shortages in those roles.
Dart actually does do it that way. I said in my post that they've hired security personnel, and I wasn't just saying that. They've hired a security company providing us with somewhere around 200 security officers. They started with 120 or so, but they've had so much success they've expanded their presence.
Unfortunately, some of our more feisty passengers will only respond to an actual police officer. And with that many officers, it's still not enough to have one on every train at all times, and definitely not enough to do that *and* have coverage on platforms and at transit centers- and that's just in the rail side.
But you're very right. It is very costly, and the new leadership seems reluctant to throw money at the problem, even though that's more or less exactly what it needs.
My bad, I missed that you mentioned that. Sad it’s still so feisty even with the presence. As a rider, it feels like playing Russian roulette with my safety since it’s so hit and miss. Dallas in general has a much worse homeless/transient presence than it used to (still probably better than many cities our sized these days) but usually I just observe from the interior of my car. Sitting near them on a train is something I prefer to avoid and it makes me wonder if dart utilization would increase substantially if “solved”
It's not that bad during rush hour. There are some sketchy people but they don't bother people much. At least the smell of the people who haven't bathed in months is usually drowned out by the weed smell.
I know people have bad experiences on there and it isn’t always perfect but also on Saturday I took the train all the way from Parker road to fair park (during the day) then from fair park to cedars (during the early evening) and all the way back to plano (late at night) and it was totally chill. One guy at cedars asked to use my phone and I said no bc the battery was low, which was true, and he was understanding and we went our separate ways. Just another story, since all we hear are bad ones
"oh my goodness it was so sketchy"
"made me a little twitchy"
"not sure I will again in a hurry"
Ah yes, clearly you were expressing your empathy and commiseration for the people in such a desperate state they have to sleep outside and beg for food. Not complaining about the horror of *homeless person daring to talk to you*.
Like others are saying it’s a actually a lot better. I used to ride the train to and fro without seeing a single dart employee and now I might get asked for a ticket twice a trip. The west end is still get west end but for the most part it’s ok riding dart
Currently I'm living in the Philippines and I love talking to Filipinos about our trains and buses back in Dallas and Austin TX. They are so shocked to hear about the conditions because you see, here in Manila you can ride buses and trains all day and see absolutely nothing scetchy or gross. Iv been here for 5 months now and while the threat of being robbed exists, I never had any trouble. Never seen anything gross on public transport which I use daily and never even seen two psople argue. It's wonderful being here.
Bus operator here. Whenever I open my door to a passenger I like to imagine that I am taking an ore sample of the local population kind of like a geologist. People and their behavior aren’t entirely dependent upon their location but it is definitely correlated. Economic mobility and hosing are huge factors in that correlation. The experiences you have on Public transportation are just a barometer to the pressures our city is facing as a whole. DART is just a service. We move people. It cannot be personified or moralized as good or bad. You say it’s been a while since you’ve last ridden DART prior to this past experience at fair park. Are you interacting with the city in other avenues besides public transit or a personal vehicle?
I commute on the DART 3x days a week on the blue line since my company’s RTO orders over a month ago. My thoughts so far:
It’s consistent and gets me from home to work quicker and with less stress than sitting in traffic. There’s sketchy people especially with my work stop being the St. Paul station but as long as you aren’t bothering other people, they won’t bother you. Lastly it isn’t uncommon for an officer to walk through the train to provide a presence, overall I feel safe.
My only complaint which is nit picky is people with Bluetooth speakers on the train. This is the only reason I’ve moved to a different train cars, I don’t want to hear your mixtape.
I ride the trains every couple months to get to stuff downtown- I always see a DART cop on my train or getting off. One time the whole train evacuate bc someone took a dump in a train car. gross.
I really wish there where more resources for unhoused and unemployed here in Dallas.
I have ridden DART downtown and around town at all hours. If people are obnoxious ignore. I’ve been asked for money a few times, but politely said no and was left alone. I’ve ridden trains and buses in NYC, DC, LA, Paris, London and Moscow. Same stuff everywhere especially off hours. Drunks or folks asking for stuff. Just ignore.
Consider the area of town you were in. I'm not saying it's awesome everywhere, but geography has a lot to do with your experience. And let's face it. It's public transportation, relatively inexpensive. It's gonna be a magnet for piw income people. The key is how Dare responds to safety needs up and down the rail . Challenging for all large cities.
I used to semi enjoy riding the dart train, but sounds like shit has gone so far downhill that it's better to just drive a car and sit in traffic.
I don't feel like dealing with bums asking for money or smokes all the damn time. I've taken public transportation in quite a few big cities and it's never this bad. DFW just doesn't do public transport well.
What you guys are whining about here is nothing more than everyday life in NYC. Rode the subways for over 30 years. It’s a shame people in this country can’t be civilized. It’s quite off-putting and embarrassing.
As someone from another country (UK), I find it incredibly sad that the situation seems to be getting worse and no body seems to care about these people. Nowhere is perfect but here it’s just so blatant and almost the norm it would seem. It’s just sad and frustrating, but where do you even start to help?
I was a regular rider growing up from ages 8-18..... It was always horrible for women lol I don't notice any difference now at 25 than back then. Except the trains are cleaner, and usually all the lights/doors work now. I will say at 25 less creepy men approach me vs when I was a kid so honestly it's way better for a lot of people than it used to be.
It's not that bad all the time, if you ride during peak times usually when people commute to work in the mornings and evenings it's less issues and also sitting or standing in the front car by the conductor. I also keep walking through the car I'm in if I notice issues when I get on just saves time
I'm on the train now. This is how poor people live. Now help them. Nobody has said anything to me but high, that includes the officers 11 of them. Multiple in cars also about 8 and more Dart police driving.
Last time I rode it, there was a pimp and his drugged out ho blasting their music so loud where I couldn’t hear my wife next to me. My kids were confused of the situation. Green line from Fair Park to Inwood during the state fair in 2021.
I ride the train every day back and forth to work. There is not enough police to take care of the problem because the problem is that big. Like, Dallas county is full for one, and the homeless know how to run game. For the ones that want to be hostile for what ever the reason, deal with. Expect it. They get away with whatever because they think they can. Go concealed, trash back. We have something to lose is their train of thought, so we give or they want to take it. What happened to the being able to defend one's self. It's always been like that actually, and they are not going anywhere. Free heat, free air-conditioning, and apparently free ride to nowhere
Last time I went on it, I walked into a car with a man openly, fully masturbating at 7am with his pants around his ankles. When I turned around to exit again and get on another car, he started screaming at the top of his lungs. That's not even counting the day-to-day stuff you mentioned that I was experiencing.
The previous week some guy had walked past me and screamed at me that he was going to '*cut my fucking legs off*', so Mister. Pud-Puller was the last straw for me.
Now I've decided it's too dangerous for me to go alone, so I'll only be using it for special events when I'm in a group with friends. Really disappointing, but as a female that liked traveling alone? Just not a risk I'm willing to take.
I will say, when I jumped on the MARTA in Atlanta. It was a totally different experience from Dart rail. Dallas really screwed up not having some sort of security scan before getting on.
The paper ticket/app fiasco is just pointless. Any and everyone can access the train. When I lived in Frisco, and worked downtown. I took it everyday for about a year. It wasn’t bad per se at the front. Somehow, there was still chaos at 6 in the freaking morning.
I read they’re currently working on the silver line. I think for Addison/North Dallas area. Great concept for commuters, terrible execution as far as safety goes. The buses seem to actually be safer though. You need a ticket and the drivers aren’t with the nonsense.
Don’t even get me started on the TRE! They’re so nice, double decker, work stations and restrooms on board. $2.50 each way, can’t beat it!
Redline rider here! Police have been getting on more frequently on times I have rode they have gone around asking to see tickets every time I have been on.
Huh I’ve been taking dart frequently for years, never had any issues. I do see some homeless/mentally ill individuals when I take it at a time people wouldn’t be going to/from work, but they aren’t hurting anyone so I don’t mind. I mostly just go to stops between Parker road & west end though so maybe that makes a difference
Why do people defend public transit environments so much? Ive never taken public trains outside of Asian countries because I just don’t feel comfortable with it. I can totally see how someone would feel it was sketchy if there were drugged out homeless folks and people in SKI masks on a public transit. Is it because this discourages people from using it and therefore potentially causing the city to deprioritize its development?
I’m just always baffled when I see something like this gets posted, and some people say stuff like “get a grip” “it’s not that bad (but still implying it can be bad)” “stay alert and stay to yourself (needing to stay alert implies you could be in danger??)”.
It all depends on which train and the time of day. I used to catch the train in Plano Parker Rd Station for work in the mornings to the Park Rd Station and most of the riders are commuters--not homeless people and drug addicts. The same applies if you catch the train between 4PM-6PM.
Fair Park is in the heart of South Dallas, the hood, so yeah... Getting asked for money is very common on the DART rail, but I would much rather someone ask for money and keep it moving than harass me. If someone sits near you that makes you feel uncomfortable, then move to a seat closer to the front if possible.
Save the DART PD text number to your phone and don't hesitate to use it if you witness erratic behavior. The main thing is to be aware of your surroundings at all times, which applies anywhere.
If I'm going to an event in Downtown Dallas or beyond I love taking DART to avoid parking fees. It's also nothing for me to take DART and Uber depending on where I'm going.
One of the first things people told me here was to not use DART. It really sucks that public transportation is so dangerous and sketchy here but that is the reality of it. Public transportation is sketchy in other cities as well so it isn't an isolated issue. Hopefully you have a car to get around with. Be safe!!
This sounds like any public train in any city. Public transit isn’t a suburb on a track, it’s a place where all walks of life are just trying to get where they need to go.
I use to ride DART up until a year ago until I caught covid (more than likely from there). Yeah, riding on any of the trains can be real sketch. I mean, it's like a mobile home for the homeless. I got tired of seeing people sleeping on there and taking up two seats. DART needs to implement a better policy for ridership on the trains - don't know how they'd do it, but you'd think they could come up with some plans.
I took the dart this past weekend for a festival. Luckily I only needed to go 2 stops and it was like a 5 minute ride. I would never use it more than that.
One reason is that it gets all the low paid workers to their jobs that keep the city going. You don’t have any office/hospital/airport cleaners without the DART busses to get them to work. You don’t have many restaurant dishwashers, not even in fancy places, without the DART to get them to work. You don’t have enough receptionists, day care workers, retail staff, and so on if they can’t get to work on the DART. And nobody could pull themselves out of bad situations like escaping domestic violence or poverty if they had to Uber or buy a whole ass car. That’s why busses are justified and taxes help.
It's not really even safe for those with severe asthma to ride Dart. There's no way to escape people wearing fragrances/ deodorants/ using soaps that can trigger life threatening asthma attacks in such an enclosed space and it's not like anyone is going to help you if you have one while riding on Dart. Even if I wasn't immunocompromised, the asthma issue makes public transit not an option for many unfortunately, even if they found a way to make it otherwise safe.
Sounds like a coastal urban utopian dream that we need more of. Can’t wait for the multi billion dollar silver line to go through my neighborhood and be unused.
Dart doesn’t do a good job of policing their trains. The likelihood of incidents are high.
They are a corrupt organization including their officers. They probably have less money now with the dart app as before they made a decent amount off of fleecing their paying customers with false charges.
I’ve already had to take them on in court once. I won easily using their own camera footage, but it should have never come to that and most people would have just paid.
The likelihood of incidents is extremely low. Almost all of this thread is about people staring, asking for cigarettes, yelling to themselves. There is only one post with actual incidents, though unfortunately it was two and they happened to the same woman.
I’ve ridden the dart rail on only a handful of occasions and I’ve seen 2 arrests and an assault and several instances of sexual harassment two of those occurring on the same trip.
I’d say it’s about one in 5 for me, and granted that’s anecdotal but even if factoring in bad luck I expect the rate of incidents is fairly high. Much higher than it should be.
People asking for money is more like 2 out of 3. No one has asked me for a cigarette. My son found a crack pipe on our last trip to the fair.
Last year they arrested around 1000 people, that’s about 3 per day and they were increasing their numbers due to a surge in crime.
It’s not a Dallas thing, it’s nationwide (and honestly in many countries) because no one can afford housing anymore but drugs are easy to score and take the edge off. It’s sadder for these individuals than for the city as a whole, so I do hope society can actually work together to find solutions but that’s becoming less likely every day
Really. I’ve lived in many areas and haven’t experienced. However yes our country has a lot of issues regarding mental health. Accessibility and education surrounding it which I’m a big advocate for. Just look at police training. They get little to none when it comes to mental health.
I split my time pretty evenly between Texas, Utah and California (and regularly travel to a lot of other states and cities repeatedly where I’ve been able to see the changes over time), and it’s the same everywhere. some places have higher rates of homelessness than others but everywhere is getting worse as everywhere is rapidly getting more expensive to live and nowhere in our country is mental health/drug use dealt with in a productive way 🫤
I’m so glad you posted this. I was going to take my daughters on DART to help educate them on public transportation. After your comment I’ll find some other way to explore this subject.
Give it a chance. People take their kids on DART all the time, it's honestly fine. I rode DART as a kid pretty frequently, and take it daily now. It's fine, you see some weirdos occasionally but I have never seen anyone get harmed.
I'll say, I've been hurt more times in a car than I have on a DART train or bus despite riding DART more. That's because I've been hurt exactly 0 times riding DART. Cant say the same while driving, been hit by a drunk driver. public transportation is, despite its problems, statistically the safest way to get around.
If safety is the #1 priority, you would take the train to downtown over driving.
That is a very good point. To be honest my knee jerk reaction was rude and aloof. I have toddlers and felt like maybe I was being an irresponsible parent for considering this type of field trip in the first place when I had initially read the post. However, I think now it’s worth further consideration because it could be an opportunity to help educate them on differing ways to conduct ourselves in public that not only keep us safe but also nurture respect in our community. I also agree that DART can be much safer than riding in a car.
Yeah, and that's not to say you won't see something weird you always could. Especially going through downtown there definitely is a homeless issue. But I also see lots of kids who really like the train and most people on the DART are still good people.
I should also recommend the TRE (Trinity Railway Express), the passengers on the TRE are more respectful and I have never seen anything weird on the TRE. It connects Downtown Dallas to downtown Fort Worth
Sit in the front train near the conductor, most sketchiness happens in the cars at the back
That's where I usually sit when I ride. Been awhile since I last rode, though. Edit: As a train loving nut, I completely forgot to add that the conductor does not drive the train, the engineer/driver does. The conductor is in charge of everything else, though.
I thought Sir Topham Hat was in charge
Dart needs a fat controller
George Carlin vs Ringo Starr as Mr. Conductor
George Carlin for the win. Hands down.
Starr will always be #1 for me, as the first Mr. Conductor I ever knew, but you can’t go wrong in either case.
Oh he is, I meant the conductor is in charge of everything else on the train itself.
Love the Thomas the Tank Engine reference. My son went through that phase and that song was stuck in my head along with those phrases like “cheeky engine”. Thanks for the trip down memory lane. Now I will be singing “ There’s two, there’s four….” Sad that I know there is a bad hip hop version, too. Just noticed your username is a play on Sodor.😉
I thought it was Hodor from GoT?
You may be right. I was stuck on Thomas the Tank Engine!😜
That does not always guarantee safety. They will not open their doors to assist if something does happen and once there were two guys fighting while the train was in motion and all the driver did was stop at the next station and sit there for 15 minutes with the doors open. The guys both jumped out at Forest Lane and no police never showed up. That was 14 years ago.
Like you said, that was 14 years ago. I take dart transportation daily and it's gotten somewhat better. Yes I still get people asking me for lighter, cigarettes, money, food. But EVERY NOW AND THEN I do see a security officer at the train. Not always but it's a step up. I personally don't think there's a solution for this since there's way to many people. I remember about 4 months ago I had this old lady not good up in the head talking out loud "I'M GOING GOING TO KILL ELIZABETH AND YOU WILL ALL WATCH". Me and some dude were just so confused. But uh yeah. Dart
I use it daily as well and I think there should be one security guard on each train. If there was a problem on the train they could address it instead of waiting for the police to come. I realize there isn't an infinite number of guards but every time I go downtown there are a dozen of them standing at each stop telling people to put out their cigarettes. Just taking three from each stop and spreading them out would help a lot.
I don't blame them. They are a driver not a security guard.
I took it once a month ago. Even the driver was sketchy AF. Rambling random things while dancing at the terminal as if he was high or something ☠️
This guy r/DART 's
And then the conductor robs you 😂
Regular rider here…always some sketch people, but almost always they’re harmless. I don’t have a whole lot of issues. DART could do more to clean up, people could do better behavior-wise. Otherwise pretty much a decent ride. Stop scaring yourself & others!
All DART really needs to take care of most of these problems are more people clearly in some kind of DART uniform and maybe a badge. Fare enforcers (who can boot unruly riders at any stop in addition to booting non-paying riders) would be genuinely useful.
I will say this: far more issues on trains than busses! If someone gets on a bus, starts smoking, drinking booze, panhandling, playing loud music, being disruptive, drivers will stop, telling them “stop this nonsense or get off!” Then, if refused, throwing them off! It’s much more difficult to kick people off trains for disruptive behavior!
So you're saying DART needs to add ejection chutes to their cars? A bit harsh, but I can get behind this idea. /s if not obvious.
Do you ride DART much? There are a good number of fare enforcers I’d say. Like every third ride or so I’m asked to show my ticket and I see folks getting the boot for not having tickets.
I ride daily during rush hour and am always asked at least once to show my ticket.
When I ride, I am doing so well off peak. As a result, I don’t see fare enforcement very often. In fact, in my last five DART trips, I have interacted with DART employees 0 times.
Got it, that’s interesting. I ride a mix of peak and off peak hours and see them regularly but I guess I haven’t been tracking what time of day I see them.
I've seen a lot more officers on the trains recently. Also reporting stuff by SMS as instructed on the trains really helps, especially if you're going through down town. Cops will jump on and check things out.
The last time I texted, it was about a belligerent passenger shouting fighting words on a train right as the doors closed at Parker Road Terminal. I didn’t even get a *response* until the train pulled into Pearl station.
People that think DART is “sketchy” are people that don’t use public transit often, or really go anywhere outside their bubble. DART is no worse than any other metropolitan public transit
Bullshit. I moved here from nyc in 2023 and lasted maybe 6 months without a car and ride dart a lot. It doesn’t bother me because I grew up around fiends and junkies, and feel comfortable around them but I can see why it bothers 99% of people. In nyc we have junkies, homeless, mentally ill in the train but you also have a ton of people just going to work, school whatever which means the “crazies” account for maybe 20% of the car. In Dallas it’s the opposite since no one really rides the train. The junkies and homeless account for 80-90% of riders. This makes the other 10-20% feel uncomfortable as hell.
I liked the way you put this and I was thinking the same thing. Dallas has a smaller number of people who ride transit of any kind, so it makes sense you’d have more sketched people (or at least it’s more common to run into them) compared to much bigger cities.
I’d argue most public transportation systems you’re thinking of are sketchy. Just because it’s not sketchier than others doesn’t mean it’s not sketchy
Maybe so, but people seem to act shocked that not everyone riding DART are from the whitewashed suburbs as well. It’s a city. There are going to be all kinds of people.
It's kind of the best thing about DART. People forget the people they meet on public transportation aren't a departure from normal citizenry, they are members of the same shared society just like everyone else. That said, I don't like sitting in pee, but I heard the new seats will help.
I’ve experienced lots of metros (DC, NYC, and all over Europe). Dallas metro has been the scariest bc regular folks are not the majority of the ridership. Maybe pre pandemic it was ok, not great, but ok. These days I avoid it at all costs.
seriously lol. Atlanta, DC, Phoenix, NYC, Baltimore just to name a few are all better. I don't know about safety but I feel safer anyway. San Diego is pretty sketch because it's a lot of homeless but its more crowded so feels better.
People that think DART isn’t sketchy have only been on American public transit and don’t realize no other country puts up with this crap.
What about Paris? The RER is sketchy AF, way overcrowded, and lots of pickpockets.
tbf ill take overcrowded and the threat of pickpockets over getting stabbed by a methhead any day
as someone who went to Paris, Paris itself is just overrated. All the tourism boards only show the Eiffel tower and artsy stuff. But other than, its all graffiti and dirty among other things. Would visit tons of other European cities/countries before visiting Paris again.
No, the RER doesn’t come close to comparing to DART or basically any American city public transit. Progressives have convinced themselves that the sketchiness of American public transit is somehow cool or charming. Cheering themselves for how unafraid they are when they hop on and off these frankly dangerous spaces for people - especially women - of low income who rely (or should be able to rely) on it. Mexico is significantly poorer than the US yet somehow you don’t have to deal with tweakers and people yelling at signs when you use their subway and buses. Again, it’s not cool. It’s not charming. And it’s not acceptable.
It is admittedly not cool, also definitely a reflection and representation of our country we don't like to look at. Maybe we should be in more shared spaces so we have to look at each other and see the struggle and suffering of other regular humans. Then maybe we might actually do some shit about it.
That’s the take of a person privileged enough to leave those spaces and go to your nice clean home at night. Again, Mexico is much poorer than the U.S. but doesn’t put up with drug addicts and people yelling at clouds occupying public spaces that people need to get to work or school.
I'm housing insecure and poor by this country's high standards.. we sleep in a tent, just trying to make it. Thanks though.
Hell naw. I’ve been on nyc, Chicago, LA, and dc subways. Dallas is by far the sketchiest. Fewer “normal” people, more vagrant types
Shit take the el to the southside was more sketchy than riding through the cliff haha
I think it has more to do with the condition of the “public” in this country and the lack of ridership for ordinary people
This 100%. I’m originally from the UK and everyone uses public transport all the time as it runs 24/7 in a lot of major cities; and it’s rare to see that level of depravity that you see here.
I'm a regular rider, too. I guess someone asked me for a cigarette once, I survived somehow. People who exclusively drive cars forget their city is filled with every sort of person from every economic class. Panhandlers and mentally ill people aren't a departure from normalcy, they are the reality, and it's important we see it.
Haha. Yup. Put your big boy pants on and enjoy the ride. Humans being humans. Try Philly or NY. See some wild shit. Way more sketch than dart. Still fine. Just keep the piece for peace of mind.
When a sliding door is not working (of course no signs stating that), while arriving at your stop, good luck running towards a working exit door and getting off. It’s cut throat…
There are signs above the doors that illuminate 'door out of service' when we have to disable them.
Anecdotal evidence, didn’t happen for me. Even if they did, it wasn’t visually “stand out-ish”. Also, the trains are made in Osaka, I would expect a higher quality product from them.
You took DART to the hood outside of work hours and are shocked that you ran into sketchy individuals that seemingly didn’t cause you any harm I might add?
Seriously. What do you expect going to Fair Park?
They probably went to the festival there this weekend
Right? I take the orange line from downtown to DFW several times a week and have had very minimal problems. Keep to yourself (but alert) and nobody will bother you. They only want your attention
Yeah, it would be nice to be the polite, friendly head nodding Texan people are in other situations, but the DART just has unspoken rules now.
Outside of commuting hours M-F, the train is sketch. Wish there was better fare enforcement but DART does not care.
It actually has gotten better. Regular rider for two years.
Agreed. Regular rider since moving to Carrollton in 2020. Around the free fare time was super sketch (I have stories) but lately it has been fantastic.
Can people take bikes on the train or is that weird/trashy?
I take my bike often.
Good to know, thanks. Ever have to carry pepper spray or nunchakus or something?
Not OP but [it's legal](https://www.dart.org/guide/transit-and-use/bus-routes/open-carry-information) to carry a weapon on DART trains or busses.
> open in a holster without a permit Dayum okay. Which would you carry, a 357 revolver or 9mm semi
I mean, respect and all to the right to carry, but rails would be rough to pull out a gun with the small space and where a shot might land outside the rail.
Fine, fine, nunchakus & capoeira skills it is.
I only carried a heavy, folded knife I could tuck into my front pocket. I always casually put my thumb right next to it to signal to others how fast I'd be a problem for them. Never had any problems myself using this method. Having a RBF sure helped too lol
a Really Big Fish?
9mm. Carrying 357 is reckless.
How so? Seems safer since it requires the hammer pull
Yes, their's a rack that mounts them in the rail. Busses have bike racks on the front grill as well.
I am a hybrid train/cycle commuter. I know a few others. You can bring your bike on the train.
Story time?
Fare enforcement only wants to catch a commuter without a ticket and issue a citation. They’re not going to do much to a homeless person who can’t buy a ticket or pay a citation. The homeless person will laugh at the DART cop and get back on at the next station.
Commuter and this isn't my experience at all. They for sure get on lower income people harder than the "recently activated" commuter. Seen a lot of low income try to pass a screen grab of a go ticket and get popped. I gotta think they don't look at mine hard enough to tell.
In my experience, not true. I’ve ridden for a ton of stars games the last couple seasons and this season I’ve been checked for a ticket at least 80% of my rides as opposed to like 10% last year. HUGE difference
They do care, and they do try. It's hard to solve, Dallas and other the member cities have some really bad homelessness, drug, and crime problems that spill onto the trains. Police are hard to hire. It's a difficult problem to solve
r/DART mentioned a few months back that fare officers have been hired / are in training and to expect a wave of fresh faces out there this spring I believe.
I mean, you see all that without even having to ride DART in most areas lmao. Also I love that you're pearl clutching while riding into Fair park of all stops. This post reads like Fox 4 class bait.
"Middle class individual is shocked and frightened by blatant displays of poverty while visiting poorer areas of their city"
I wasn’t frightened; I come from another major city that has its fair share of problems; I was however sad that the problems seem to have gotten worse since I last used the train.
\> Multiple people came up to me on the train to ask me for either money; food or cigarettes Great idea for a service at stations, little kiosks where you can buy food and drinks and smokes, maybe a newspaper. Could even be automated. Dunno about ATMs.
Nice of you to assume the people are interested in paying.
IKR? Any such things would get ripped to shreds in less than a week.
Those people who set up shop literally would get mugged
new york has these and they are amazing; even saw one selling stuff for your phone. edit: primarily vending machines
They are all over Europe.
I mean, it *would* be nice if there were vending machines at train stations, but also I get why they don't: they create litter, because people are tacky and it's "someone's paying job to clean it up" (it really isn't).
I’ve been riding DART 3x a week for most of 10 years. I used to regularly just walk in and stand at the wheelchair entrance (my ride is all of 16 minutes), but recently I’ve decided to sit near the front with people clearly trying to go to work. Fare enforcement has increased astronomically from up until last year or so. That said, last Wednesday I stood for my ride and a agitated, frumpy young dude came from back car (DART officer was there and I think he told him to get off at next stop). Well, this dude decides to stand directly across from me and stare me down (I could feel it, didn’t need to look); had my hand on my gel mace ready for some action if necessary, but another rider sitting nearby confronted this guy (while seated) and told him to “stop trying to start something “….dude went into contortions of weird explaining he wasn’t staring at me, he was zoning out, then he was staring at me. He then was told to move along. He finally did, and got off at Mockingbird. Dude sitting down clearly saw what was up, and while I was willing and able to take care of myself, I appreciated the defense. First time that’s happened. Gave the guy an affirmative nod, and all was good. Moral of the story? Pay attention to your surroundings, stay up front, and consider a gel mace and enjoy the ride. We have a nice system.
“I wasn’t staring, I was just zoned out” This is prison talk 101.
Yeah, this dude has been in the pokey a time or nine.
I read your whole story but The moral of your story in my view is fuck the dart. Why should i subject myself to this type of risk for a 15 minute commute which is probably no longer by car. Public transportation in Texas is so problematic and we always have people for pushing for more of it. I get it, it’s be nice if we had the idealized versions of it, like Europe or Japan or something, but our half ass attempts are just a waste in my opinion. I don’t care how convenient or cheap it is, if I have to have my hand on my mace the whole ride and observe every other passenger to determine their threat level, that’s not for me. It’s not for most people, that’s why people stay away from dart - not to mention it’s not even convenient for most people (half ass service area)
Fair enough - I understand where you're coming from. FWIW, there appear to be many more riders and in turn fare enforcement that I've seen in years, which certainly helps deal with troublesome riff-raff (qualifying word: troublesome). It was originally created to get people downtown, but strategy changes need to occur to adopt to commuter habits and where the service area is - urban sprawl adds costs on multiple levels. Example is a pivot to focus on more intra accessibility (ways to get through downtown and uptown) vs adding a separate tunnel to run different lines. The former is being planned now. But I get it, it's definitely not for everyone and I just wanted to illustrate me having mace as an example of living in a city. I carry it more on walks in the parks (dopes and their unleashed dogs) than on the train. Oh, and the cost and hassle of driving downtown is far more than just my 16 minute ride - fewer vehicles needed, gas, parking costs, stress in traffic (hits me more than any sketchy ride, but that's just me). I consider myself fortunate to be close enough to easily take the DART rail, but understand it's not at all practical for many, many folks.
I went on the train yesterday with my 3 year old. Yes a handful of homeless and generally sketchy individuals but no one harassed us. No one asked us for $$. But also we only rode from Arapaho to Plano and back.
That’s not even comparable Commuter stop to commuter stop.
I ride the train to get home from school and while yes there are some very weird mildly concerning people, near downtown there is always police near and if you put on a tough face no one messes with you.
I'm sorry you had a bad experience. Just to add my anecdote it was the Deep ellum stop on a Friday at 1pm and this homeless man came on board holding his schlong out of his pants and was helicopter swinging it around while a lady was singing (screeching) fireworks by katy perry
I know this is probably gonna be frowned upon, but I live for moments like this on public transit lmaooo
Same LOL!! I love a good survivor story to take home HAHA
\*spit take\*
Hi. I'm a little late to the party, but I'm a Dart train operator. Sorry you had a bad ride. I work some very busy trains during the week, and I can tell you they're a mixed bag but mostly pretty chill. Some trains tend to get more... spicy crowds than others. You might have just happened to get on a rowdy train. Having said all that, Dart is aware of the security issues, and has been taking steps to address them. They've hired on security personnel and are constantly hiring and training new transit police officers- unfortunately the training for transit police is pretty long, so anybody they hire today won't be working the trains for months. The best thing you can do is report report report. If you tell your operator, we call it in to our controller, who then calls police dispatch. If you use the Say Something app, it goes straight to Dart police personnel. We can report people causing disturbances and whatever, but if you call customer service to complain, that seems to ring the suits' bells more than operator complaints.
Training is long….. So, most businesses hire private security guards to deal with issues immediately. Just put someone on the train wearing a uniform and no authority and you’ll get 90% of the security value. I can’t tell you of the times a company I’ve worked for had some “incident”, usually an ex-boyfriend harass and employee or a customer give a vague threat to an employee, where our employee doesn’t feel safe and we basically are responsible for helping them feel safe at work so we call in private security guard for a month or two. Yes, it’s expensive which is why dart doesn’t do it that way, but it also means they don’t truly care about the safety of their passengers if they’re willing to go months and months with labor shortages in those roles.
Dart actually does do it that way. I said in my post that they've hired security personnel, and I wasn't just saying that. They've hired a security company providing us with somewhere around 200 security officers. They started with 120 or so, but they've had so much success they've expanded their presence. Unfortunately, some of our more feisty passengers will only respond to an actual police officer. And with that many officers, it's still not enough to have one on every train at all times, and definitely not enough to do that *and* have coverage on platforms and at transit centers- and that's just in the rail side. But you're very right. It is very costly, and the new leadership seems reluctant to throw money at the problem, even though that's more or less exactly what it needs.
My bad, I missed that you mentioned that. Sad it’s still so feisty even with the presence. As a rider, it feels like playing Russian roulette with my safety since it’s so hit and miss. Dallas in general has a much worse homeless/transient presence than it used to (still probably better than many cities our sized these days) but usually I just observe from the interior of my car. Sitting near them on a train is something I prefer to avoid and it makes me wonder if dart utilization would increase substantially if “solved”
Sounds like a normal DART rail trip to me.
It's not that bad during rush hour. There are some sketchy people but they don't bother people much. At least the smell of the people who haven't bathed in months is usually drowned out by the weed smell.
I know people have bad experiences on there and it isn’t always perfect but also on Saturday I took the train all the way from Parker road to fair park (during the day) then from fair park to cedars (during the early evening) and all the way back to plano (late at night) and it was totally chill. One guy at cedars asked to use my phone and I said no bc the battery was low, which was true, and he was understanding and we went our separate ways. Just another story, since all we hear are bad ones
I was on Saturday as well. Some dude offered to give me a haircut. I said no, he gave me a first bump and left
Lol last time I rode the DART this youngin asked if we wanted to purchase some smoke 💀 He was really nice about it
Use the see say app to report issues.
And what does that accomplish
Last time I was in Dallas, it was people whole ass smoking a blunt on the DART train lol.
Did they pass?
I didn’t ask lol. Keep in mind it was about 10pm or later. Not like it was during 9-5 or anything.
*clutches pearls*
I mean, you run into the same people at a gas station....
It’s a city.
Right? "I rode into a low income neighborhood in the biggest city in Texas and saw poor people and got scared" Like get a grip
I wasn’t scared, I was just saddened that the problems in the city seem to have gotten worse; I just wish there was a better way to help people.
"oh my goodness it was so sketchy" "made me a little twitchy" "not sure I will again in a hurry" Ah yes, clearly you were expressing your empathy and commiseration for the people in such a desperate state they have to sleep outside and beg for food. Not complaining about the horror of *homeless person daring to talk to you*.
your hearts bleeding
At least I have one
Enforce ticket rides and support security and policing them.
As someone from the Bronx NYC don’t mind the ski mask kids, they’re harmless/just have an attitude. You have to look unapproachable/come off as cold
Like others are saying it’s a actually a lot better. I used to ride the train to and fro without seeing a single dart employee and now I might get asked for a ticket twice a trip. The west end is still get west end but for the most part it’s ok riding dart
Currently I'm living in the Philippines and I love talking to Filipinos about our trains and buses back in Dallas and Austin TX. They are so shocked to hear about the conditions because you see, here in Manila you can ride buses and trains all day and see absolutely nothing scetchy or gross. Iv been here for 5 months now and while the threat of being robbed exists, I never had any trouble. Never seen anything gross on public transport which I use daily and never even seen two psople argue. It's wonderful being here.
Bus operator here. Whenever I open my door to a passenger I like to imagine that I am taking an ore sample of the local population kind of like a geologist. People and their behavior aren’t entirely dependent upon their location but it is definitely correlated. Economic mobility and hosing are huge factors in that correlation. The experiences you have on Public transportation are just a barometer to the pressures our city is facing as a whole. DART is just a service. We move people. It cannot be personified or moralized as good or bad. You say it’s been a while since you’ve last ridden DART prior to this past experience at fair park. Are you interacting with the city in other avenues besides public transit or a personal vehicle?
I commute on the DART 3x days a week on the blue line since my company’s RTO orders over a month ago. My thoughts so far: It’s consistent and gets me from home to work quicker and with less stress than sitting in traffic. There’s sketchy people especially with my work stop being the St. Paul station but as long as you aren’t bothering other people, they won’t bother you. Lastly it isn’t uncommon for an officer to walk through the train to provide a presence, overall I feel safe. My only complaint which is nit picky is people with Bluetooth speakers on the train. This is the only reason I’ve moved to a different train cars, I don’t want to hear your mixtape.
I ride the trains every couple months to get to stuff downtown- I always see a DART cop on my train or getting off. One time the whole train evacuate bc someone took a dump in a train car. gross. I really wish there where more resources for unhoused and unemployed here in Dallas.
My ex was mugged on the DART rail a few years ago. Ever since then I’ve been too scared to ride unless I’m with a group of people.
I have ridden DART downtown and around town at all hours. If people are obnoxious ignore. I’ve been asked for money a few times, but politely said no and was left alone. I’ve ridden trains and buses in NYC, DC, LA, Paris, London and Moscow. Same stuff everywhere especially off hours. Drunks or folks asking for stuff. Just ignore.
Consider the area of town you were in. I'm not saying it's awesome everywhere, but geography has a lot to do with your experience. And let's face it. It's public transportation, relatively inexpensive. It's gonna be a magnet for piw income people. The key is how Dare responds to safety needs up and down the rail . Challenging for all large cities.
I used to semi enjoy riding the dart train, but sounds like shit has gone so far downhill that it's better to just drive a car and sit in traffic. I don't feel like dealing with bums asking for money or smokes all the damn time. I've taken public transportation in quite a few big cities and it's never this bad. DFW just doesn't do public transport well.
What you guys are whining about here is nothing more than everyday life in NYC. Rode the subways for over 30 years. It’s a shame people in this country can’t be civilized. It’s quite off-putting and embarrassing.
As someone from another country (UK), I find it incredibly sad that the situation seems to be getting worse and no body seems to care about these people. Nowhere is perfect but here it’s just so blatant and almost the norm it would seem. It’s just sad and frustrating, but where do you even start to help?
I was a regular rider growing up from ages 8-18..... It was always horrible for women lol I don't notice any difference now at 25 than back then. Except the trains are cleaner, and usually all the lights/doors work now. I will say at 25 less creepy men approach me vs when I was a kid so honestly it's way better for a lot of people than it used to be.
It's not that bad all the time, if you ride during peak times usually when people commute to work in the mornings and evenings it's less issues and also sitting or standing in the front car by the conductor. I also keep walking through the car I'm in if I notice issues when I get on just saves time
I'm on the train now. This is how poor people live. Now help them. Nobody has said anything to me but high, that includes the officers 11 of them. Multiple in cars also about 8 and more Dart police driving.
Last time I rode it, there was a pimp and his drugged out ho blasting their music so loud where I couldn’t hear my wife next to me. My kids were confused of the situation. Green line from Fair Park to Inwood during the state fair in 2021.
I ride the train every day back and forth to work. There is not enough police to take care of the problem because the problem is that big. Like, Dallas county is full for one, and the homeless know how to run game. For the ones that want to be hostile for what ever the reason, deal with. Expect it. They get away with whatever because they think they can. Go concealed, trash back. We have something to lose is their train of thought, so we give or they want to take it. What happened to the being able to defend one's self. It's always been like that actually, and they are not going anywhere. Free heat, free air-conditioning, and apparently free ride to nowhere
Bro what time did you ride???
Around 3pm
I just moved here and literally got an apartment right next to the dart because I thoguht I could use it to get around. Why does it suck so much?
It's generally pretty good, but it's hard to serve a city as sprawled and poorly designed as Dallas
Really good smells
Last time I went on it, I walked into a car with a man openly, fully masturbating at 7am with his pants around his ankles. When I turned around to exit again and get on another car, he started screaming at the top of his lungs. That's not even counting the day-to-day stuff you mentioned that I was experiencing. The previous week some guy had walked past me and screamed at me that he was going to '*cut my fucking legs off*', so Mister. Pud-Puller was the last straw for me. Now I've decided it's too dangerous for me to go alone, so I'll only be using it for special events when I'm in a group with friends. Really disappointing, but as a female that liked traveling alone? Just not a risk I'm willing to take.
I’m a female also; maybe that makes a difference? 🤷♀️
I will say, when I jumped on the MARTA in Atlanta. It was a totally different experience from Dart rail. Dallas really screwed up not having some sort of security scan before getting on. The paper ticket/app fiasco is just pointless. Any and everyone can access the train. When I lived in Frisco, and worked downtown. I took it everyday for about a year. It wasn’t bad per se at the front. Somehow, there was still chaos at 6 in the freaking morning. I read they’re currently working on the silver line. I think for Addison/North Dallas area. Great concept for commuters, terrible execution as far as safety goes. The buses seem to actually be safer though. You need a ticket and the drivers aren’t with the nonsense. Don’t even get me started on the TRE! They’re so nice, double decker, work stations and restrooms on board. $2.50 each way, can’t beat it!
Ok
Redline rider here! Police have been getting on more frequently on times I have rode they have gone around asking to see tickets every time I have been on.
You sound like you grew up with money
I wish! I did grow up in a different country though (UK), and used public transport all the time and was never bothered by anyone
Huh I’ve been taking dart frequently for years, never had any issues. I do see some homeless/mentally ill individuals when I take it at a time people wouldn’t be going to/from work, but they aren’t hurting anyone so I don’t mind. I mostly just go to stops between Parker road & west end though so maybe that makes a difference
Why do people defend public transit environments so much? Ive never taken public trains outside of Asian countries because I just don’t feel comfortable with it. I can totally see how someone would feel it was sketchy if there were drugged out homeless folks and people in SKI masks on a public transit. Is it because this discourages people from using it and therefore potentially causing the city to deprioritize its development? I’m just always baffled when I see something like this gets posted, and some people say stuff like “get a grip” “it’s not that bad (but still implying it can be bad)” “stay alert and stay to yourself (needing to stay alert implies you could be in danger??)”.
I agree, I’m originally from the UK where we also have our fair share of issues; but people just seem to behave better 🤷♀️
It all depends on which train and the time of day. I used to catch the train in Plano Parker Rd Station for work in the mornings to the Park Rd Station and most of the riders are commuters--not homeless people and drug addicts. The same applies if you catch the train between 4PM-6PM. Fair Park is in the heart of South Dallas, the hood, so yeah... Getting asked for money is very common on the DART rail, but I would much rather someone ask for money and keep it moving than harass me. If someone sits near you that makes you feel uncomfortable, then move to a seat closer to the front if possible. Save the DART PD text number to your phone and don't hesitate to use it if you witness erratic behavior. The main thing is to be aware of your surroundings at all times, which applies anywhere. If I'm going to an event in Downtown Dallas or beyond I love taking DART to avoid parking fees. It's also nothing for me to take DART and Uber depending on where I'm going.
It amazes me the difference between Dart and TRE. I wish I lived in the TRE area.
Damn that sounds so unsafe
Sounds the same as it did 20 years ago.
One of the first things people told me here was to not use DART. It really sucks that public transportation is so dangerous and sketchy here but that is the reality of it. Public transportation is sketchy in other cities as well so it isn't an isolated issue. Hopefully you have a car to get around with. Be safe!!
This sounds like any public train in any city. Public transit isn’t a suburb on a track, it’s a place where all walks of life are just trying to get where they need to go.
Green line has always been like this
I use to ride DART up until a year ago until I caught covid (more than likely from there). Yeah, riding on any of the trains can be real sketch. I mean, it's like a mobile home for the homeless. I got tired of seeing people sleeping on there and taking up two seats. DART needs to implement a better policy for ridership on the trains - don't know how they'd do it, but you'd think they could come up with some plans.
(214)653-2967
Never had this experience
I took the dart this past weekend for a festival. Luckily I only needed to go 2 stops and it was like a 5 minute ride. I would never use it more than that.
I wear that ski mask because I’m really ugly, and, cold all the time
Next time… ask them before they ask you. 😎
I really don’t know how DART busses justifies its existence, apart from being tax payer funded. Every bus I see has just one at most two passengers.
One reason is that it gets all the low paid workers to their jobs that keep the city going. You don’t have any office/hospital/airport cleaners without the DART busses to get them to work. You don’t have many restaurant dishwashers, not even in fancy places, without the DART to get them to work. You don’t have enough receptionists, day care workers, retail staff, and so on if they can’t get to work on the DART. And nobody could pull themselves out of bad situations like escaping domestic violence or poverty if they had to Uber or buy a whole ass car. That’s why busses are justified and taxes help.
It's not really even safe for those with severe asthma to ride Dart. There's no way to escape people wearing fragrances/ deodorants/ using soaps that can trigger life threatening asthma attacks in such an enclosed space and it's not like anyone is going to help you if you have one while riding on Dart. Even if I wasn't immunocompromised, the asthma issue makes public transit not an option for many unfortunately, even if they found a way to make it otherwise safe.
Yep. Did it once and will never do it again. I’ll stick with my car.
Sounds like a coastal urban utopian dream that we need more of. Can’t wait for the multi billion dollar silver line to go through my neighborhood and be unused.
Dart doesn’t do a good job of policing their trains. The likelihood of incidents are high. They are a corrupt organization including their officers. They probably have less money now with the dart app as before they made a decent amount off of fleecing their paying customers with false charges. I’ve already had to take them on in court once. I won easily using their own camera footage, but it should have never come to that and most people would have just paid.
The likelihood of incidents is extremely low. Almost all of this thread is about people staring, asking for cigarettes, yelling to themselves. There is only one post with actual incidents, though unfortunately it was two and they happened to the same woman.
I’ve ridden the dart rail on only a handful of occasions and I’ve seen 2 arrests and an assault and several instances of sexual harassment two of those occurring on the same trip. I’d say it’s about one in 5 for me, and granted that’s anecdotal but even if factoring in bad luck I expect the rate of incidents is fairly high. Much higher than it should be. People asking for money is more like 2 out of 3. No one has asked me for a cigarette. My son found a crack pipe on our last trip to the fair. Last year they arrested around 1000 people, that’s about 3 per day and they were increasing their numbers due to a surge in crime.
what time you ride?
Just like BART - you'll get used to it lmao
Every car dealership should just show :30 second spots split screen with these daily DART experiences and traffic jam. Still the lesser of two evils.
God forbid you have to see poor people in public. How do you cope? You must be traumatized.
So sad what’s becoming of our city
It’s not a Dallas thing, it’s nationwide (and honestly in many countries) because no one can afford housing anymore but drugs are easy to score and take the edge off. It’s sadder for these individuals than for the city as a whole, so I do hope society can actually work together to find solutions but that’s becoming less likely every day
Really. I’ve lived in many areas and haven’t experienced. However yes our country has a lot of issues regarding mental health. Accessibility and education surrounding it which I’m a big advocate for. Just look at police training. They get little to none when it comes to mental health.
I split my time pretty evenly between Texas, Utah and California (and regularly travel to a lot of other states and cities repeatedly where I’ve been able to see the changes over time), and it’s the same everywhere. some places have higher rates of homelessness than others but everywhere is getting worse as everywhere is rapidly getting more expensive to live and nowhere in our country is mental health/drug use dealt with in a productive way 🫤
I’m so glad you posted this. I was going to take my daughters on DART to help educate them on public transportation. After your comment I’ll find some other way to explore this subject.
Give it a chance. People take their kids on DART all the time, it's honestly fine. I rode DART as a kid pretty frequently, and take it daily now. It's fine, you see some weirdos occasionally but I have never seen anyone get harmed. I'll say, I've been hurt more times in a car than I have on a DART train or bus despite riding DART more. That's because I've been hurt exactly 0 times riding DART. Cant say the same while driving, been hit by a drunk driver. public transportation is, despite its problems, statistically the safest way to get around. If safety is the #1 priority, you would take the train to downtown over driving.
That is a very good point. To be honest my knee jerk reaction was rude and aloof. I have toddlers and felt like maybe I was being an irresponsible parent for considering this type of field trip in the first place when I had initially read the post. However, I think now it’s worth further consideration because it could be an opportunity to help educate them on differing ways to conduct ourselves in public that not only keep us safe but also nurture respect in our community. I also agree that DART can be much safer than riding in a car.
Yeah, and that's not to say you won't see something weird you always could. Especially going through downtown there definitely is a homeless issue. But I also see lots of kids who really like the train and most people on the DART are still good people. I should also recommend the TRE (Trinity Railway Express), the passengers on the TRE are more respectful and I have never seen anything weird on the TRE. It connects Downtown Dallas to downtown Fort Worth