State Fair News

DART institutes special train schedule during State Fair of Texas

The train is a great way to get to the State Fair of Texas.

Photo courtesy of State Fair of Texas

With the State Fair of Texas looming, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) has created a special schedule for routes to and from the event which will run from September 27-October 20.

Fair days are always busy on DART rail and buses, especially on weekends and gamedays. Here's a brusher-upper on the basics.

Service on Green Line
DART’s Green Line is the one that hits Fair Park, and it's accessible via two stops:

Fair Park Station on Parry Avenue, at the fairgrounds entrance
MLK, Jr. Station, south of R.B. Cullum Boulevard, which provides access to Gate 6 and the Cotton Bowl Stadium

Get familiar with the connections
The Green Line can be reached via DART Light Rail and Trinity Railway Express (TRE). Look for trains marked "Fair Park," "Buckner," or "Lawnview" for Green Line service.

Southbound Red, Blue, and Orange Line riders: Transfer at Pearl/Arts District Station.
Northbound Red and Blue Line riders: Transfer at Akard Station.
Eastbound Orange Line riders: Transfer at Bachman Station.

Hours
Extra Green Line trains will operate between Victory Station and Lawnview Station Monday-Friday 9 am-3 pm, and Saturday-Sunday 9 am-6 pm, running approximately every 10 minutes.

The extra hours will spill over to the Red and Blue lines on weekends, with increased frequency similar to regular weekday hours for the Red and Blue lines, with trains running every 20 minutes on Saturday-Sunday between 6 am-10 pm.

Orange Line trains will run all the way to Parker Road Station throughout the Fair, also with an increased 20-minute frequency, until 10 pm daily.

Non-DART connections
Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA) connects to DART's Green Line at Trinity Mills Station, but users will need to visit DCTA.net for connection times.

TRE will run on a modified Saturday schedule on all four Sundays during the Fair, with transfers to the Green Line available at Victory Station. For details, visit TrinityRailwayExpress.org/StateFair.

“The State Fair of Texas is just around the corner and DART is ready to help connect you to the fun,” said Bernard Jackson, Senior Execuitve Vice President and Chief Operations Officer for DART. “This event is a favorite for Texans, and welcomes guests nationally and from around the world. We can’t wait to welcome passengers as they experience some of the best of what Texas has to offer, and we are glad to increase service on the weekends to help connect our riders to this incredible event.”

Contactless payments
DART provides four contactless options for purchasing your pass:

GoPass® app: Download it for free from the Apple App Store or Google Play and activate your pass before boarding.
GoPass® Tap card: Purchase and reload your card at participating retailers. This reloadable option provides you with the best fare and can be tapped on a reader at DART stations or buses. (Note: It’s only valid for local fares and not for TEXRail, DCTA, or Trinity Metro.)
Credit or debit card: Use any contactless credit or debit card by tapping it on a reader at a DART station or bus.
Mobile device: Pay with apps like Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Samsung Pay by tapping your device on a reader at DART stations or buses.

Purchase a Local Day Pass for $6, good for DART Rail, local buses, and riding the TRE between DFW Airport/CentrePort Station and EBJ/Union Station. Tarrant and Denton County customers need a Regional Day Pass for $12.

Weapon policy
A reminder that the State Fair of Texas has changed their weapons policy this year and no firearms permitted on the Fairgrounds. Please note DART stations do not have lockers for passengers to store personal items. For additional details and to see other state fair policies, please visit www.bigtex.com.

Football game
DART will operate a modified rail schedule for the Texas-OU game on Saturday, October 12; the kick-off for the game is at 2:30 pm. Visit DART’s Red River Rivalry page for complete details.

$5 off Fair admission with the DART GoPass
DART gets you to your gate and offers you State Fair savings. They have partnered with the State Fair of Texas to offer riders a special promotion; to access these discounts, enter code 24DARTSAVE when purchasing your tickets on www.bigtex.com. This deal is available for any day of the 2024 State Fair season.

festivals state fair

Airport News

Cathay Pacific to launch roundtrip flights from DFW to Hong Kong

Cathay Pacific

Cathay Pacific plane in the sky, coming to DFW soon.

An airline carrier is making its debut at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport: Cathay Pacific Airways, based in Hong Kong, is expanding its North America network with the launch of non-stop flights between Hong Kong and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) for the very first time.

According to a release, it's part of a bigger expansion by Cathay Pacific, which is increasing its number of flights to the US and Canada by nearly 25 percent. It will add four direct flights to Dallas per week, and increase flights to cities such as New York, San Francisco, and Vancouver.

The new service will begin on April 24, 2025

Dallas marks Cathay Pacific’s sixth passenger destination in the U.S. and eighth in North America, bolstering the connectivity of its home hub, Hong Kong. The new service will begin on April 24, 2025.

In a release, Cathay Group Chief Customer and Commercial Officer Lavinia Lau notes Cathay's "deep roots" in Hong Kong, as well as its connection to China.

"Cathay continues to build Hong Kong as a leading international aviation hub that connects people to the most exciting places in the world," Lau says. “Dallas Fort Worth International Airport is one of the world’s busiest airports. With our Cathay Pacific codeshares as well as other flight options, customers can connect to over 190 domestic destinations in the United States, as well as 11 destinations in Central and South America via DFW, further enhancing Hong Kong’s connectivity with North America and important Belt and Road Initiative participating countries.”

Currently, Cathay Pacific operates 88 return passenger flights per week to destinations in North America, including Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Toronto and Vancouver.

The airline will operate four return flights per week between Hong Kong and DFW using its modern Airbus A350-1000 aircraft, with the following flight schedule:

CX898
Hong Kong (HKG) 16:05 departure
Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) 17:55 arrival
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday

CX897
Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) 23:55 departure
Hong Kong (HKG) 05:05+2
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday

Cathay Pacific is also increasing frequencies on its North America passenger services in 2025. By May, the airline will be operating 108 return flights per week. Aside from the new Dallas service, this will include three return flights per day to New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles respectively, and a daily return flight to both Boston and Chicago.

Cathay Pacific also continues to increase flights on its services to Canada, with two daily return flights to Vancouver and 13 return flights per week to Toronto.

Cathay Pacific’s new passenger service to DFW will also complement Cathay Cargo’s existing freighter services to the city via Anchorage. To cater for the growing demand during the air cargo peak season, Cathay Cargo is operating five additional return freighter flights per week to North America starting this month. In total, Cathay Cargo is currently operating up to 37 return freighter flights per week to North America.

Cathay Pacific began serving the North America market with its first non-stop service to Vancouver in 1983. The airline’s long-established presence in North America demonstrates the continent’s sustained importance to its overall network.

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