Deception in Dallas: Strategic Misrepresentation in Rail Transit Promotion and Evaluation

This article describes the misuse of land-use and ridership forecasts by Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART). DART made extensive use of clearly unrealistic land use forecasts and optimistic ridership forecasts in its unsuccessful efforts to obtain voter approval for a 91-mile rail transit system. When alternative analyses indicated that the proposed $2.6-billion rail system would carry only slightly more riders than an unimproved bus system, DART tried to conceal the information. Subsequently, when a citizen's group obtained the release of these unfavorable findings, DART attempted to mislead voters about their significance and released cost-effectiveness analyses based on earlier, and clearly incorrect, ridership forecasts.