Des Moines, eight suburbs and Polk County commit to work together to reimagine regional transit

Des Moines, eight suburbs and Polk County commit to work together to reimagine regional transit
 
November 25, 2024, Des Moines, Iowa – The City of Des Moines, Polk County and eight suburban communities of Altoona, Ankeny, Bondurant, Clive, Johnston, Urbandale, Windsor Heights and West Des Moines have agreed to stay members of the Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART) and work together over the next 18 months to redesign the system. 
 
DART will continue to operate under the previously agreed upon phase-in of the new funding formula that was adopted by the DART Commission unanimously in 2021 to better align cost and benefit for all member communities.
 
“The suburban members of DART will continue to work with the City of Des Moines, DART staff, and consultants to make our public transit system the best that it can be,” says Russ Trimble, Mayor of West Des Moines and Chair of DART. “Not only is public transit critical to workforce and economic development, but it is literally a lifeline to the central Iowans who rely on it.  We owe it to our riders, our staff, our businesses and our taxpayers to provide the most efficient, effective transit system possible.”
 
“We also are committed to the formula and governance previously agreed on as essential components to retaining suburban value in DART and look forward to continuing to work with Des Moines to move our region forward,” Trimble concluded.
 
“The City of Des Moines believes strongly that public transit is essential to so many people who rely on it to get to school, work and medical appointments,” said Des Moines Mayor Connie Boesen.   “We are committed to working with our suburban partners to examine how we redesign the system to better serve those who rely on it every day within the current financial realities we all face. I also look forward to a future in which we hope to be able to provide more and better service with a regional funding source.”
 
This path forward does not relate to or change the decisions previously made by the Grimes and Pleasant Hill city councils to provide an 18-month notice of their intention to withdraw from DART.  Any community providing that notice has the ability to rescind it prior to the DART Commission voting to accept the community’s withdrawal.