State Fair Time

How to DART it to the State Fair of Texas 2014

With the 2014 State Fair of Texas looming on the horizon, it's never too early to form a plan, and that includes figuring out how to get there. DART to the rescue with options and instructions as follows:

The Green Line is the primary route, via two stations: Fair Park, located on Parry Avenue at the entrance to the fairgrounds, and MLK Jr., located south of R.B. Cullum Boulevard and convenient to the Gate 6 entrance and the Cotton Bowl.

Green Line trains will run approximately every 15 minutes between Victory and Lawnview stations from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm weekdays, and 9:30 am to 7:30 pm on weekends.

How to connect to Green Line
All DART rail and Trinity Railway Express (TRE) passengers can transfer to the Green Line. Look for trains that read Fair Park, Buckner or Lawnview.

If you're coming from the west such as Irving, take the Orange Line and transfer to the Green Line at Bachman Station.
If you're coming from north of downtown Dallas, you can take the southbound Orange, Red or Blue Line and transfer to the Green Line at Pearl/Arts District or St. Paul stations.
If you're coming from south of downtown Dallas, you can take the northbound Red or Blue Line and transfer to the Green Line at Akard Station.
If you're coming from the far west such as Fort Worth, you can take the TRE and transfer to the Green Line at Victory Station; find details at TrinityRailwayExpress.org.
If you're coming from Denton or far north, you can take DCTA to the Green Line at Trinity Mills Station. Consult DCTA.net; the Denton County Transportation Authority will be adjusting its schedule during the fair and will post departure and arrival times.

Special rail service
DART is adding rail service. Effective Monday September 22 through Sunday October 19, the changes include the following:

All Orange Line trips will extend to Parker Road Station.
Red/Blue/Orange Lines will have two cars while Green will use three cars.
Green Line short service will be provided between Lawnview and Victory Stations from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm, Monday-Friday, and 9:30 am to 7:30 pm, Saturday-Sunday.
Red and Blue Line service will have additional service after 7 pm Saturdays and Sundays for transfer traffic.
Trinity Railway Express (TRE) will operate on all four Sundays during the fair.

A different schedule will be in place for the football game on Saturday, October 11. Information can be found at Red River Showdown.

Tickets and prices on day pass and GoPass app
Purchase a local day pass for $5, good for DART rail, local buses and riding the TRE from CentrePort Station. Tarrant and Denton County customers need to purchase a regional day pass for $10. Passes are available at ticket vending machines located at all DART and TRE stations and on the GoPass app available for both Apple and Android.

This year you can also buy your State Fair of Texas general admission with the GoPass app. Just show your purchased fair ticket on GoPass at the gates to get in. To make the deal sweeter, save $2 on every fair ticket by using GoPass.

You do not have to buy a DART transit ticket in order to take advantage of the State Fair discount ticket. Details are available at DART.org/statefair or by calling DART at 214-979-1111.

Special games, special service
DART and the TRE will provide additional service to the Southwest Airlines State Fair Classic featuring Prairie View A&M and Grambling State universities on Saturday September 27, and the AT&T Red River Showdown game between Texas and Oklahoma on Saturday, October 11. Details are available at State Fair Classic and Red River Showdown.

The fair runs from September 26 through October 19.

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Weed News

Texas AG Ken Paxton sues Dallas over decriminalization of marijuana

Photo courtesy of US Fish & Wildlife

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The City of Dallas has been sued by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for its efforts to decriminalize marijuana.

According to a release, Paxton has sued the city for adopting a city charter amendment that would decriminalize marijuana-related offenses and prohibit police from enforcing Texas law.

That amendment was Proposition R, or Dallas Freedom Act, which decriminalizes possession of four ounces of marijuana or less. Voters passed the amendment in the November 5 election, with 67 percent voting in favor.

The lawsuit, filed against the Dallas City Council, alleges that Proposition R is unconstitutional and violates Texas drug laws criminalizing any amount of marijuana.

Paxton says that cities can't "pick and choose which state laws to follow." He's proposing a permanent injunction to stop Proposition R from going into effect.

"The City of Dallas has no authority to override Texas drug laws or prohibit the police from enforcing them," says Paxton in a statement. "This is a backdoor attempt to violate the Texas Constitution, and any city that tries to constrain police in this fashion will be met swiftly with a lawsuit by my office.”

Before the recent election, possession of two to four ounces of marijuana could result in a punishment of 180 days in jail and a $2,000 fine.

Ground Game Texas, the activist nonprofit that has also helped get marijuana decriminalization on the ballot in elections across Texas, first got the issue on the ballot in July with the necessary 50,000 signatures.

Dallas is not the only city to be sued; Paxton also filed lawsuits against five other cities in Austin, Denton, Elgin, Killeen, and San Marcos in January for their ballots and policies decriminalizing marijuana.

Both Austin and San Marcos had a judge overturn their cases, according to a FOX 4 report.

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