The Arlington On-Demand public transportation system provides services to the greater Arlington area.
Courtesy of the City of Arlington
The Arlington City Council unanimously voted to accept $350,000 to bolster the Arlington On-Demand service in preparation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup during its Tuesday meeting.
The funding comes from a $10 million public transportation grant for the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Urbanized Area. The Regional Transport Council for the North Central Texas Council of Governments unanimously approved the grant during its May 14 meeting.
The funds will be used to lease additional vehicles from Via, which provides the On-Demand service through a turnkey contract with the city, and add additional service hours so more cars are active during regular operating hours. The effects will run from June 1 to July 31, according to Ann Foss, Arlington transportation department Planning and Programming Manager.
“We want to make sure that we’re able to get people in and around our city effectively,” Mayor Jim Ross said. “Our on-demand service is a critical part of that.”
The Arlington On-Demand service launched in 2017 to fulfill the everyday transportation needs of residents and visitors, Foss said. The service is one of the city’s only public transportation options for the more than 100,000 expected guests on game day and currently operates a maximum of 60 cars on any given day, Foss said.
Arlington is no stranger to big events, having hosted a Grand Prix, Concerts, MLB All-Star games and more, but the city has never hosted something of this magnitude.
Foss said Arlington On-Demand doesn’t usually see big spikes in demand during large events, but said her department will be working closely with Via to monitor use of the service to adjust to demand accordingly. The first match in Arlington is on a Sunday when the service doesn’t run, allowing the department to see how conditions will be in the city.
“We’re anticipating more impact on the days adjacent to match days,” Foss said. “We don’t anticipate as much demand for people using Arlington On-Demand to get to and from the stadiums.”
Part of that is due to a “significant” ride-share geofenced area around the stadium that plans to keep traffic flowing on game days.
People using taxis or other rideshare vehicles can not be dropped off or picked up at the stadium and instead will be directed to the Arlington E-Sports stadium parking lot, which has been designated as the Rideshare lot, according to FIFA documents.
Thanks to the geofenced area and additional funding, Foss said there will be enough cars for Arlington residents who use the service to get to work, school, doctors’ appointments and other essential meetings.
“The way the service is designed, it’s really designed to meet the needs of our residents and their daily trips, less for visitors who are here just for special events,” Foss said.
100% of the funds must be used for public transportation, and the regulations for the funds generally mirror the requirements of Section 5307 Urbanized Area Formula Grant Program, with a few exceptions, according to electronic item seven on the agenda.
Some key grant deadlines for Arlington include submitting a split letter identifying how the funds will be used by June, 1 and submitting a draft grant application by January 31, 2027, according to the Regional Transport Council documents. All funds must be spent and drawn by September 30, 2027, or the remaining balance must be returned.
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