ARLINGTON, Texas — A North Texas governmental agency will provide $100,000 to address a funding shortfall for the Fort Worth-Oklahoma City Heartland Flyer.
The news site Fort Worth Report says the Regional Transportation Council, a 45-member organization that it part of the North Central Texas Council of Governments, has allocated the money from regional toll revenues to address a $72,000 shortfall in Heartland Flyer funding for the current fiscal year, which ends in September. The Council of Governments will also inform the Texas legislature that the funding requested by the state Department of Transportation is inadequate and should be bolstered.
Texas provides about $2.6 million for the train, but has not increased funding for more than a decade.
A staff report said the move will prevent disruptions, and notes that the transportation council had previously approved $700,000 for a shortfall in 2023. That was ultimately not needed as Texas DOT addressed the issue.
The train’s route includes two of the 16 counties in the NCTCOG: Tarrant — which include the southern terminus of Fort Worth — and Denton.
Amtrak figures show that Heartland Flyer ridership increased by 14.8% in fiscal 2023, to 72,379 — the highest figure in the last eight years, exceeding the 71,340 in 2017. A study is currently underway to consider a possible extension of the train to connect with the Southwest Chief in Newton, Kan.; in December, officials of the Kansas Department of Transportation said infrastructure improvements for that 198-mile addition could reach $573 million [see “Kansas officials say extension …,” Trains News Wire, Dec. 11, 2025].
Share this article
