DART has over 250 employees, including dedicated staff and contractors committed to the overall maintenance of the system. DART maintains hundreds of locations that are cleaned daily- many 3 times per day or more.
By Tricia White | Managing Editor
Earlier this year, Dallas Area Rapid (DART) launched their, Point B, Strategic Plan, with several key goals that aim to ensure the organization is the first-in-mind mobility partner for residents across the service area. As part of this, the organization has launched a new campaign: Live Green, Ride Clean. This effort addresses the cleanliness and overall maintenance of DART Facilities, including bus stops, transfer and train stations, and our buses and Light Rail Vehicles.
DART has over 250 employees, including dedicated staff and contractors committed to the overall maintenance of the system. DART maintains hundreds of locations that are cleaned daily- many 3 times per day or more.
DART is an industry pioneer in terms of Mainline Cleaning; a practice where Light Rail Vehicles are being cleaned throughout the day- even when the vehicle is in revenue service. In addition to this effort, all vehicles are brought into rail and bus service yards where they are deep cleaned before they are put back into revenue service the following morning.
“DART is thrilled to be able to spotlight the efforts of our clean team through the Live Green, Ride Clean initiative,” said Bernard Jackson, DART’s Senior Executive Vice President & Chief Operations Officer. “This effort relates to many of the pillars of our Point B Strategic Plan, especially Quality Service and Culture of Contribution. As part of these, we want our riders to see the care that our team puts towards making DART spaces clean and inviting and we want our employees to deliver on our mission of creating a best-in-class mobility experiences that help people and communities connect and flourish.”
The overall goals of Live Green, Ride Clean are to:
- Enhance Hygiene Standards: Comprehensive cleaning of stations, bus shelters, trains, and buses to ensure all areas meet or exceed hygiene regulations.
- Landscape Beautification: Improve drive up appeal and enhance beauty through plants and landscape materials.
- Improve Functionality: Maintenance work to address any operational issues and ensure all facilities are functioning optimally.
- Elevate User Experience: Create a more inviting and user-friendly environment for all visitors and employees.
“It is extremely gratifying to hear from the community as they notice the changes that are being implemented as we work to enhance the system,” said Gustavo Espinoza, Assistant Vice President of Maintenance of Way and Facility Maintenance. “Many people would be surprised to find out the effort and staffing that is required to maintain a system as large as ours. We take immense pride in ensuring that things look their best, that is why we have efforts like the mainline cleaning program, or a 2-hour window to remove any graffiti that is offensive.”
“It is extremely gratifying to hear from the community as they notice the changes that are being implemented as we work to enhance the system.”
Gustavo Espinoza, Assistant Vice President of Maintenance of Way and Facility Maintenance
DART customers can play a key role in maintaining DART informed of any issues that need to be addressed: customers may call 214-979-1111 to reach DART’s Customer Service Department, they are available 7 days a week from 5 a.m. to 12 a.m. and can initiate the process for the clean team to address any customer identified issues.