Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) will provide free transportation for citizens heading to the polls on Super Tuesday.
This year, Dallas County will offer 450 voting locations throughout the county, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
Voters traveling to polling locations on March 5 within the DART service area can ride at no charge on buses, GoLink, trains, streetcars, paratransit services, and the Trinity Railway Express between the EBJ Union Station and the Centreport/DFW Station. Passengers must show a valid voter registration card to receive a free ride.
Rides will be offered to polling locations in various cities, including Dallas, Carrollton, Plano, Addison, Richardson, Irving, and more.
“For decades, the DART Board of Directors has shown a commitment to the communities we serve by allowing free fares on state, national, or primary election days throughout the service area to get voters to the polls,” Jeamy Molina, chief communications officer for DART, said in a release. “We hope voters take advantage of this opportunity and use DART to get out and vote.”
DART will also offer free roundtrip shuttle service to and from the Dallas County Elections Training/Warehouse at 1460 Round Table Drive on Super Tuesday. The first shuttle will depart from the warehouse at the shuttle stop at the intersection of Titan Drive and Empress Row at 6:30 a.m., with the last shuttle leaving at 6:45 p.m.
Final pickup from the polling location will be at 7:30 p.m.
Tarrant County commissioners voted to end a long-standing partnership with Trinity Metro that gave citizens similar services on Election Day. Some members of the court said that the provision of these rides was outside the county’s responsibility and was an improper use of taxpayer funds.
“I don’t believe it is the county government’s responsibility to try to get more people out to the polls. That is not the responsibility of county government; it is not the responsibility of taxpayers, which is where our money comes from,” said County Judge Tim O’Hare, according to Fox 4 KDFW.
Commissioner Roy Brooks, however, rejected this notion, noting historic difficulties faced by African-American voters.
“We’ve died on the streets of America at the hands of cops with dogs who were sic’d upon the people, at the hands of lynchers, … [and those] who terrorized our communities, and made it plain that voting was something that was ‘not for you, boy.’ We have a responsibility to make it easy for people to vote,” said Brooks, per Fox 4.
Follow the links below for information on polling sites near you:
