Blue Line (Dallas Area Rapid Transit)

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The Blue Line is a light rail line in the system of mass transit in Dallas, Texas (USA) operated by the Dallas Area Rapid Transit system. Along with the Red Line, it was one of the original rail lines in Dallas.

The southern terminus of the line is currently at Ledbetter Station in south Dallas at Lancaster Road, just south of Ledbetter Drive (Loop 12). The line runs north, under the Dallas Convention Center and through downtown Dallas. After leaving Mockingbird Station, the line diverts to the northeast towards White Rock Lake. The line then goes north and then east into Garland, finally ending at the Downtown Garland Station at Walnut and Fifth Streets.

The rail line was part of the initial launch of DART's light rail service in 1996. At the time, the line only ran from Illinois Station to Pearl Station in the northeast corner of downtown. In 1997, the Blue Line was extended south to Ledbetter Station and was extended along the Red Line to Mockingbird Station, in preparation for the future extension to Garland.

On 24 September 2001, the Blue Line extended to White Rock Station, just northwest of White Rock Lake. On 6 May 2002, the Blue Line was extended to the LBJ/Skillman Station, just beyond LBJ Freeway (Interstate 635). On 18 November 2002, the Blue Line was again extended to its current terminus at the Downtown Garland Station in downtown Garland.

Current plans for the Blue Line call for the further extension through Garland into Rowlett, connecting to the Rowlett Park & Ride by December 2012.^[1]

DART's 2030 Transit System Plan, approved in October 2006, calls for the Blue Line to be extended south beyond Ledbetter Station to Interstate 20, near Bonnie View Road and the SouthPort Intermodal Terminal. The plan also includes a new Lake Highlands station near Skillman Street and Kingsley Road.^[2]