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Denton A-Train Launches With Excitement, Some Confusion

By Shelley Kofler, KERA News

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-974245.mp3

Dallas, TX – Tuesday is day two of new commuter rail service in Denton County and the transit authority is hoping to avoid inaugural confusion.

Monday morning some 500 riders boarded Denton's new A-train. Those wanting to make the 70-minute trip to Dallas needed to get from the Downtown Denton Transit Center to the Trinity Mills Station in Carrollton. From there they could transfer to a DART train that would take them into big D.

What some didn't understand was that to make the Dallas connection they needed to board in downtown Denton by 7:33 a.m., according to Dee Leggett with the Denton County Transit Authority.

Leggett: People misunderstood or misread the schedule and ended up arriving in Old Town, Lewisville when their ultimate destination was Carrollton but the train was going out of service. So we had to dispatch some buses to help those individuals complete their trip.

Leggett says the transit authority has posted its schedule online and staff members are at rail stations all this week to educate riders about using the route.

Currently the A-train connection to Dallas only operates during morning and afternoon peak periods. Riders making that trip can board between 4:57 a.m. and 7:33 a.m. Dallas-Denton service in the afternoon begins just after 3:00 p.m. and continues until 8:00 p.m.

The A-train is free until Saturday. Then a regional pass costs $10 a day or $120 a month.

Link: DCTA (schedules, maps, fare information)