DART breaks ground on Silver Line maintenance facility

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) officials last week broke ground on a Silver Line equipment maintenance facility in the Plano, Texas.

When completed, the facility will feature two buildings to house, clean and  maintain Silver Line vehicles; an underground fueling tank; a canopy structure; and a storage yard.

Construction will take place within DART’s rail right-of-way (approximately 14 acres), near the end of the Silver Line track alignment and a few hundred feet from the Shiloh Road Station. The site is also located behind an office building that DART purchased earlier this year in Plano’s industrial district. The office building will serve as the operations and maintenance home for Silver Line staff once the regional-rail service begins late next year or in early 2026.

By working with Plano officials to secure the location and construction of the facility, DART saved over $30 million in capital costs and $1 million in annual operating expenses compared to constructing a facility further from the Silver Line tracks, DART officials said in a press release. According to a presentation to the DART board of directors, the total cost of the construction is not to exceed $74,360,000.

The maintenance facility will become the fourth regional rail maintenance facility in North Texas and the first one in Collin County.

Testing on the Silver Line began this summer, between Shiloh Road Station and the University of Texas at Dallas Station. Testing in other segments of the 26-mile Silver Line alignment, which runs between Plano and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, will continue until revenue service begins on the line.