Future Bright for N. Texas Aviation

Perot delivered the keynote address, acknowledging the challenges D-FW faces economically, but urging those in attendance to work together to reach their goals. The region is in much better shape than it was at the end of the last major downturn, he said.

“One thing we’re trying to do now is make sure we have the same vision for North Texas so when we go to Austin, we can speak with one voice.”

He believes with the expiring of the Wright Amendment flight restrictions at Love Field and the restructuring of American Airlines, the region’s aviation industry is on solid ground.

General aviation seems to be following an upward path, also. NCTCOG reexamined the General Aviation and Heliport System Plan over the past five years to make sure the anticipated growth in the industry could be handled. The short answer is yes.

If local and industry decisionmakers commit to funding improvements and system maintenance while continuing to monitor performance, as laid out in the system plan, the region could experience a tremendous economic expansion in the coming decades. And with coordination of educational resources, North Texas can provide the aviation workforce necessary to maintain its position as a leader in the aviation world well beyond 2035.

As we look back at the region’s progress in 2011, it’s easy to be excited about the future of Dallas-Fort Worth. Major roadway projects throughout the region have been undertaken thanks to the innovative approaches of our public-sector partners and creative partnerships these road-building agencies have formed with private business.

Our passenger rail network also is growing into one of the nation’s most impressive systems and will soon provide direct access to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport via DART’s Orange Line. The Blue Line will extend light rail service from downtown Garland to Rowlett.

The North Central Texas Council of Governments recently determined another massive rail project – passenger rail along the 62-mile Cotton Belt corridor – is viable. A comprehensive report of potential financing mechanisms indicates $2.7 billion could be available over 40 years to help pay for it.

But as we admire the work being done to improve the reliability of the transportation system, we must remember how integral air quality is to our future mobility.

Much of North Texas is in serious nonattainment for ozone, meaning our air isn’t clean enough to comply with federal ozone standards. We have been working diligently as a region for years to improve our air so our children and grandchildren can breathe easier. Yet, we are still falling short of attainment.

After years of steadily getting closer to meeting attainment, we took a step back in 2011, thanks in part to the record heat we remember all too well. We are refocusing our Air North Texas campaign in an effort to meet our attainment goal soon so we can ensure the transportation progress you see every day continues.

More important than mobility is the health of the region.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, exposure to ground-level ozone can lead to many health issues, including breathing problems and even permanent lung damage. We need to protect North Texans of all ages from harmful pollutants.

And it starts with you.

We’re asking the public to help us by paying attention to ozone forecasts over the next several months. If an air pollution watch is expected for the next day, consider what you can do to minimize your effect on air quality. If you live close to a transit stop, think about taking the bus or train to work. If that’s not an option, maybe you can bring your lunch, eliminating a short midday lunch trip.

The region has many carpool and vanpool options through TryParkingIt.com. It allows residents to record how they commute to work every day and see firsthand how much money they are saving. We encourage you to take what you learned from this and apply it during potentially high-ozone days throughout ozone season.

We also need the support of the business community. If you allow your employees to work from home periodically, consider implementing the practice for air pollution watch days. Many of you have experience with this after last year’s snow and ice storms. We encourage you to take what you learned from this and apply it during ozone season.

Think beyond ozone season, which began March 1 and runs through October 31. You may decide that permanently implementing these changes makes sense for your company. Your employees may be happier, and even more productive, leading to a more successful bottom line for your business.

Are we all doing our share for clean air?

Let's make air quality a focus this season and throughout the year so we can be proud to call Dallas- Fort Worth home. After all ... air quality matters.

Resources
TryParkingIt.com
AirCheckTexas Drive a Clean Machine
Air North Texas
Questions/Comments - Contact Us

Return to top | Mobility Matters main page | More Mobility Matters articles | Mobility Matters archives

Cedar Hill Mayor is Optimistic About the Region Member Profile - Rob Franke, Mayor, City of Cedar Hill Rob Franke has learned an important lesson in his time as chair of the Dallas Regional Mobility Coalition. Although Dallas-Fort Worth has a diverse collection of large and small cities, everyone’s challenges are similar.

Dallas’ might be on a different scale than those of Cedar Hill, the city Franke has presided over as Mayor for 14 years, but residents deal with the same issues. One of the most important is transportation. And Franke is working at multiple levels to help ensure the region’s transportation system continues to improve.

But getting to this point has not been easy. The road has been planned for more than 40 years, and many people from both Johnson and Tarrant counties deserve credit, he said. “I guess you could call it truly a combined, team effort,” he said. “There’s no one individual person you can single out that made this happen.” In Cedar Hill, which has grown from 32,000 to more than 45,000 since 2000, he has seen priorities change from simply widening roads to completing projects with a more context-sensitive approach.

For example, when expanding Belt Line Road, which cuts east-west through the city down toward Joe Pool Lake, the typical engineering approach would have been a straight road. But people wanted a road that would preserve the natural beauty of the area and make way for bicycles and trails.

A professional engineer with a degree from Kansas State University, Franke has been involved in transportation at the city and regional levels for several years.

Duncanville’s Grady Smithey, a former member of the Regional Transportation Council, sparked his interest in transportation, encouraging him to learn about the time a project takes from concept to construction. Franke also has been motivated by how transportation boosts quality of life.

Franke has represented Cedar Hill, Duncanville, DeSoto, Lancaster and Glenn Heights on the Regional Transportation Council since 2008. In those four short years, he has made his mark on transportation.

He earned the 2011 William J. Pitstick Award, given annually by NCTCOG to a leader who exemplifies regionalism.

Dallas-Fort Worth cannot build enough roads to eliminate congestion, so it must follow a multimodal path, he said.

Passenger rail is part of that solution and brings innovation to the area, he said. Franke chairs two RTC subcommittees responsible for examining how rail can be expanded in the region. The Multimodal/Intermodal/High Speed Rail/Freight Subcommittee is developing different approaches to how the region will move people and goods by rail.

The Transportation Funding Initiative’s Legislative Fundamentals Subcommittee is working on issues related to the implementing agencies, voting geography and use of 4A and 4B tax revenue should the state grant local voters the right to impose additional transportation taxes.

The region faces many funding challenges as it seeks the money necessary to meet the transportation needs of more than 6.5 million residents. Franke has learned that while transportation planners and policymakers must think of the long-term effects of projects, the legislative process is driven by short-term priorities.

So how does one bridge that gap to bring North Texas the funding it needs?

The region should present long-term solutions that are quantifiable in the short-term and are part of a solution that can last years, he said.

People struggle with productivity during their commutes. But if they can drive just a few minutes to a rail station and board a train for the office, they can also get a head start on the day much easier than if they are behind the wheel stuck in traffic. Once residents understand how they can use their time aboard mass transit vehicles, Franke believes they will be willing to pay for more transit.

The key is demonstrating that added value to people, he said.

Franke enjoys being part of the 43-member RTC because its members genuinely want to do what’s best for the region, he said.

They advocate passionately for their positions, he said, but in the end want to find solutions that will help the entire area, not just specific cities, counties or transportation authorities.

But there is an adjustment period for new members.

“There are so many smart people in that room who know so much that it’s easy for someone to feel intimidated until they get to know people,” he said.

And it doesn’t take long to realize that the RTC is full of people who want to do the right thing to boost regionalism, he said.

"I like to see the mutual respect we have for priority projects in the region," he said.

Resources
City of Cedar Hill
Questions/Comments - Contact Us

Return to top | Mobility Matters main page | More Mobility Matters articles | Mobility Matters archives