Dallas, TX
Dallas should be the leader in supporting DART
As North Texas grows, Dallas should take the lead in mobility and public transportation. That means staying committed to Dallas Area Rapid Transit.
Instead, Dallas is leading in the wrong direction. The city has talked about using DART funds to cover massive pension obligations. Similar talks continued at a Government Performance and Financial Management Committee meeting last month, when council members approved a legislative priority to “seek restructuring of DART sales tax contribution.”
The full City Council will discuss the proposal and vote on it this fall. Council members didn’t commit to much, and deliberately left the language open-ended so it can be fleshed out in later discussions.
Still, we don’t like where this conversation is going. Plano’s and Rowlett’s city councils have already passed resolutions in support of cutting sales tax funding to DART.
Dallas-Fort Worth’s population is projected to keep growing by huge margins for the next couple of decades, adding millions of jobs in the process, according to the North Central Texas Council of Governments.
Not only can DART continue to help drive economic development as it has for decades, it can also help move a growing workforce while reducing congestion on already crowded roads, making the region more competitive. And for those without access to cars, DART’s services are critical.
Dallas residents depend on DART far more than those from neighboring suburbs, with over 70% of riders hailing from the city, according to a May memo. How DART is treated around the horseshoe should reflect that.
Make no mistake, DART has work to do. During the pandemic, between fiscal years 2019 and 2021, DART’s ridership nearly halved, down from just over 70 million to about 36 million, according to a DART spokesperson. Since then, ridership has crept back upward, with DART providing around 50 million rides across all modes of transportation last fiscal year.
Total ridership at the end of this fiscal year is projected to be about 58 million, a DART spokesperson said. Reaching that number would represent good progress, but would still leave room for improvement.
From the 26-mile Silver Line that will stretch from Plano to DFW International Airport to added security, cleaning crews and a system modernization program that will see 95 light rail vehicles and 522 buses replaced, among other upgrades, DART has invested millions over the last few years to boost ridership and improve service. Those efforts appear to be working and deserve time to play out.
The answer to DART’s troubles should not be disinvestment but instead to work with the agency on long-term solutions. Billions have been invested in DART over the years. Treating that as a sunk cost would be incredibly shortsighted.
DART and its member cities can still help each other grow, and Dallas can set an example. In a city committed to an equality of opportunity DART can help provide, that should be a no-brainer.
We welcome your thoughts in a letter to the editor. See the guidelines and submit your letter here. If you have problems with the form, you can submit via email at letters@dallasnews.com
Where is Cade Cunningham in the MVP conversation?
Following the Pistons’ big win over the Boston Celtics, Omari and Bryce break down the improvements they’ve seen from the franchise star player.
DALLAS — A late comeback attempt fell short for the Detroit Pistons.
They fell to the Dallas Mavericks in overtime, 116-114, after recovering from a third-period 18-point deficit. A dunk by Anthony Davis gave the Mavericks the lead for good with 1:32 to play in overtime.
Cade Cunningham (29 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists) missed a short jumper with 7 seconds left that would’ve tied the game at 116, and Jalen Duren (17 points, 13 rebounds) couldn’t convert two offensive rebounds into a tip-in basket. Davis corralled the rebound with 0.9 seconds left, and the Mavericks called timeout.
The Pistons fouled Davis after the inbounds pass with a foul to give. Daniss Jenkins, who scored 11 points after halftime, stole the second inbounds pass with 0.6 seconds left but didn’t have enough time to get a shot off.
The Pistons trailed by 18 points with five minutes to play in the third quarter. Their bench unit was instrumental during a 31-11 run that gave the Pistons the lead again, 99-97, midway through the fourth quarter. They held Dallas to 38.5% shooting and forced nine turnovers in the second half.
No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg gave his Mavericks the lead, 110-109, with under 20 seconds to play with a midrange jumper. Isaiah Stewart was fouled by Davis on the other end with 3.4 seconds left, and he split the trip to the line to tie the game at 110. Klay Thompson missed a floater at the buzzer, sending the game into overtime.
‘Dallas’ unit leads Detroit back from big deficit
Down 86-68 with 4:57 to play in the third quarter, coach J.B. Bickerstaff looked to the end of his bench for a spark. Jenkins, Marcus Sasser and Paul Reed checked into the game for the first time in consecutive order, joining Ron Holland and Javonte Green. The Pistons have a Dallas-centric roster — Holland, Sasser and Jenkins are all from the city, and Cunningham is from nearby Arlington.
They led an 11-3 run to cut the deficit to 10, tallying four steals during the stretch — two for Green and one each for Jenkins and Reed. Cunningham checked in for Green to open the fourth quarter, and the run continued. A 3-pointer from Jenkins, coast-to-coast layup by Holland and midrange jumper from Jenkins extended the run to 21-7, cutting the deficit to 93-89 with under 10 minutes to play.
As he has done several times this season, Jenkins rose to the moment in the final period. An entry pass from Jenkins to Holland created an open layup to slash Dallas’ lead to two, and Jenkins made a layup over three Mavericks defenders to tie the game at 95 with 7:46 remaining and push the Pistons’ run to 27-9.
With 59 seconds left in the fourth, a pair of free throws from Jenkins extended the Pistons’ lead to 3, 109-106. He played 11 minutes and 32 seconds in the final period, second only to Cunningham, and overtime.
Ausar Thompson ejected in second quarter
The Pistons lost Thompson — their primary defender on Flagg — midway through the second period after an exchange with an official.
With 5:09 remaining before halftime, Thompson tied up Mavericks guard Ryan Nembhard under the rim and was whistled for a foul. Thompson didn’t like the call and got in the ref’s face, and was instantly ejected. NBA rules make it an auto-ejection when a player makes physical contact with an official.
It was a strong start for Thompson prior to the ejection, as he had eight points, two assists, two rebounds and a steal in nine minutes of play. Stewart entered for him in the second quarter.
In all, it was a rough night for the Pistons regarding the officials. Cunningham was whistled for a tech late in the second quarter after disagreeing with a call, and Bickerstaff was whistled for a tech during halftime after arguing with an official.
Duncan Robinson exits with left knee injury
With 11:08 to play in the third quarter, Robinson suffered a knee-to-knee collision with Mavericks wing Naji Marshall. Robinson limped off of the floor and was initially ruled “questionable” to return until he was downgraded to “out” in the final period.
Robinson finished with two points and two rebounds, shooting 1-for-7 overall and 0-for-5 from 3. He missed two games in early December with a right ankle sprain.
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PHILADELPHIA – It was evident in July and August that Dallas Goedert was going to be a big part of the Eagles’ offense in the red zone. It felt that way most summers, but this time, with first-year offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo in place, the Eagles are dialing up plays for the tight end.
“I think when I get a ball in my hand down there, I’m tough to tackle, I can find my way in, fight my way in,” said Goedert. “It’s just that our red-zone philosophy has changed a bit. We used to run a lot, a lot of quarterback sneaks, things like that down there. We’ve tried to find ways to get me the ball, which is really cool, and I’m gonna keep trying to make them work.”
So far, Goedert has nine touchdown catches. According to NFL Research, five of his touchdowns were thrown behind the line of scrimmage this season, the most by a non-running back in the Next Gen era.
“He’s such a physical guy,” said Patullo. “His determination to just get yards and have an impact on anything, whether it’s in the pass game, whether it’s gadgets, whatever it may be. He’s really dynamic with the ball in his hands. So anytime you can get the ball in his hands, obviously, that’s what we’re going to try to do.”
However, the touchdown math didn’t add up for Goedert. He thought eight was the magic number to break the record for most TD catches by a tight end in franchise history, owned by Pete Retzlaff, but Retzlaff had 10 in 1965, meaning Goedert needs one more to break that dusty, 60-year-old mark.
“I thought it was eight, but I was wrong, so I thought I already had it,” he said.
Reminded that he would have had it already had he not dropped a wide-open throw to him in the end zone on Sunday, which would have given him a career-high three in one game, he winced, then answered.
“Yeah, scars right there,” he said. “That one hurts.”
Dallas Goedert Has Eye On Record
With three games left, and with his heavy involvement in the red zone, it is reasonable to expect that the record will at least be tied, perhaps even broken.
“It’s pretty cool,” he said. “Anytime you can break a record, obviously things are going well for you. Obviously, winning is the most important thing and I want to do whatever I can to help win. If they’re giving me the ball down there, I’m gonna try to score. It would be a cool thing to have.”
Goedert’s production in the low red zone is a reason the Eagles lead the NFL in red-zone success, converting close to 70 percent of their trips (25-for-36) inside the 20 into touchdowns. The tight end has nine of those 25 red-zone TDs.
“We’ve had different things for me in the red zone throughout my career here, a lot of them just haven’t got called,” said Goedert. “Once they started calling them, I tried to make sure they worked so they could keep designing and calling other ones. Any time you go in the huddle and hear that play, knowing you have the opportunity to get in the end zone, it gets you kind of excited, for sure.”
Nore NFL: Eagles’ Backup Staying Patient, Takes First-Team Practice Reps
The Dallas Stars start up a brief two-game road trip on Thursday with a game against the San Jose Sharks.
Here’s everything to know about the matchup.
Dallas Stars at San Jose Sharks
When: Thursday, 9 p.m.
Where: SAP Center, San Jose
TV/Streaming: Victory+
Radio: Sportsradio 96.7/1310 The Ticket
Bottom line
The San Jose Sharks host the Dallas Stars after Macklin Celebrini scored two goals in the Sharks’ 6-3 win over the Calgary Flames.
San Jose has a 10-5-3 record in home games and a 17-14-3 record overall. The Sharks have a 15-4-2 record when scoring at least three goals.
Dallas is 22-7-5 overall and 11-2-4 on the road. The Stars have a 12-1-2 record in games their opponents commit more penalties.
The teams meet Thursday for the second time this season. The Stars won the previous matchup 4-1.
Top performers
Jason Robertson has 20 goals and 20 assists for the Stars. Wyatt Johnston has scored five goals and added nine assists over the last 10 games.
Celebrini has 18 goals and 33 assists for the Sharks. Tyler Toffoli has five goals and six assists over the past 10 games.
Last 10 games
Stars: 7-2-1, averaging 3.1 goals, 5.2 assists, 3.7 penalties and 8.9 penalty minutes while giving up two goals per game.
Sharks: 6-4-0, averaging 3.4 goals, 6.1 assists, 3.9 penalties and 7.8 penalty minutes while giving up 3.3 goals per game.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Find more Stars coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
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