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Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is becoming a poster child for transit-oriented development. The agency has attracted more than $3.3 billion in development throughout its 45-mile light-rail system, which serves the cities of Dallas, Garland, Richardson and Plano, University of North Texas economists say.

Transit-oriented communities are springing up throughout the cities, helping to stimulate the local economy.

And DART officials expect the trend to continue. The number of homebuyers and renters throughout the country that desire walking distance to public transportation is expected to more than double during the next 20 years. That demand will increase in Dallas more than any other city besides Los Angeles, the Center for Transit Oriented Development reports.

Later this year, DART will begin construction on light-rail extensions to Fair Park, South Dallas, Pleasant Grove, Farmers Branch, Carrollton, Irving and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, doubling the system by 2013 and adding about two dozen suburban transit stops. The National Association of Realtors predicts the Dallas area will add 200,000 residential units in transit-oriented communities by 2025.