Claudia Ramirez beamed with pride as the south Fort Worth bus route she rode as a child was rebranded into a festive, Latino-themed transit experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s so vibrant,\u201d Ramirez, a lifelong Fort Worth resident, said of Trinity Metro\u2019s new La L\u00ednea Rosa buses. \u201cWe have lowriders and everything Southside represented on the bus. It\u2019s pretty nice.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The updated bus route was unveiled Tuesday morning \u2014 the first day of Hispanic Heritage Month \u2014 with a fiesta in the parking lot of La Gran Plaza de Fort Worth, the popular mall that celebrates Latino culture with restaurants and retail shops. The buses travel much of the way on Hemphill Street, a main thoroughfare for the south side.<\/p>\n
Trinity Metro\u2019s new buses are updated with a bold \u201cMexican pink\u201d color, complete with images representing south Fort Worth such as the mall, skateboarders, ballet folkl\u00f3rico dancers and mariachi musicians. Even an image of \u201cMatchstick Man,\u201d a wooden sculpture installed on Magnolia Avenue, is represented on some buses.<\/p>\n
![\"(Christine](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/20260915_PinkBus-3-1024x683.jpg\")
Ivette Nava, with Ballet Folkl\u00f3rico Azteca de Fort Worth, dances during Trinity Metro\u2019s unveiling of La L\u00ednea Rosa Sept. 15, 2026, in Fort Worth. One of the buses depicts ballet folkl\u00f3rico dancers. (Christine Vo | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
The interior of the buses have seats designed to emulate Mexican blankets, along with a sky-painted ceiling with festive banners. A checkered mural design includes photos of residents from the community. The Latino theme extends to bus drivers, who will wear soft pink Mexican guayabera shirts, instead of their Trinity Metro uniforms.<\/p>\n
Miguel Calera, marketing director for La Gran Plaza, said the bus route is more than a transit connection.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt creates a new connection for our community and a new getaway for visitors to experience the culture, originality and diversity that makes Fort Worth unique,\u201d Calera said, noting that the new buses and bus shelters represent the color of pink Mexican bougainvillea flowers.<\/p>\n
![\"(Christine](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/20260915_PinkBus-5-1024x683.jpg\")
Local leaders cut the ribbon at Trinity Metro\u2019s unveiling of La L\u00ednea Rosa buses Sept. 15, 2026, in Fort Worth. (Christine Vo | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n
Officials said the relaunch of Route 1 was a beautiful collaboration of neighborhoods, talented partners and Trinity Metro staff members.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is more than just pink buses,\u201d said Anette Landeros, the agency\u2019s chief strategy officer. \u201cThis is about the neighborhoods and the people we connect.\u201d<\/p>\n
Landeros said the agency worked hard on its rebranding of color-coded routes to create the Orange Line<\/a> to the Fort Worth Stockyards and the Blue Line<\/a> downtown shuttle. However, with La L\u00ednea Rosa, the agency strove to top those efforts.<\/p>\n \u201cLadies and gentlemen, I do believe we did!\u201d Landeros told an audience that included members of the community, city council and the Trinity Metro board. \u201cHopefully, you see that in everything you see here today.\u201d<\/p>\n Mayor Mattie Parker thanked residents for braving the summertime heat to see the \u201cbeautiful, fun way\u201d to take the bus.<\/p>\n \u201cOnly for Trinity Metro would we be out here in 100 degrees in a parking lot,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s how much we love transit, ladies and gentlemen.\u201d<\/p>\n Parker said that La Gran Plaza is an economic center of Fort Worth and notable as one of Trinity Metro\u2019s top destinations.<\/p>\n \u201cLa L\u00ednea Rosa is about connecting people, celebrating community and creating opportunity for all of us,\u201d Parker said. \u201cI am very bullish on the future of transit and transportation across the city of Fort Worth. We would not be here without Trinity Metro. \u2026 Transit can oftentimes be a contentious topic; we\u2019ve had our days here in Fort Worth, but no longer. The leadership here understands that.\u201d<\/p>\n Rich Andreski, president and CEO of Trinity Metro, said he was impressed by the turnout for a new bus route.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s so much to celebrate in Fort Worth right now,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re growing, we have so much investment happening across our city, in downtown and beyond. There\u2019s really a unique opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n That pioneering spirit, he said, is \u201cabout what makes a city great \u2014 a place that people want to live, grow and invest.\u201d<\/p>\n La L\u00ednea Rosa is the embodiment of this idea, Andreski said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a community that\u2019s more connected, talent that stays and grows, and every resident can participate in our city without owning a car,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n District 11 City Council member Jeanette Martinez said Calera was the first to suggest the color pink for the bus rebranding.<\/p>\n \u201cNot just any color pink \u2014 but Mexican pink,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe connectivity was always there,\u201d Martinez said. \u201cThanks to Trinity Metro, La L\u00ednea Rosa will expose our children to art and bring a new sense of pride to our community with the potential to increase ridership and exposure to Southside businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n Megan Henderson, president of Near Southside Inc., said it\u2019s appropriate that Route 1 is now La L\u00ednea Rosa because the route has \u201calways been the heart of Fort Worth.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe love the bus on the Near Southside,\u201d she said. \u201cOur district has been built around transit.\u201d<\/p>\n The service from Fort Worth Central Station to the mall, 4200 South Freeway, will begin the morning of Sept. 16 as the festive fleet rolls into action. The route and its schedule will not change although the service will begin operating out of bus bay A at the downtown station, 1001 Jones St.<\/p>\n Transit is a significant part of south Fort Worth culture since the city once had interurban street cars and continues to be a railroad hub for the state, Henderson said.<\/p>\n Even though the bus name has changed, \u201cthe No. 1 line carries some weight because the bus has always put the community first,\u201d Henderson said.<\/p>\n She added that the buses will continue operating during the 2026 ArtsGoggle<\/a> street event on Oct. 24.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is a trusted resource for so many of us in the past and in the future,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Eric E. Garcia is senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"(Christine](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/20260915_PinkBus-1-1024x683.jpg\")
Laura Sanchez Kinkade, vice president of development and strategic events for the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, cools off with a themed fan during Trinity Metro\u2019s unveiling of La L\u00ednea Rosa buses Sept. 15, 2026, in Fort Worth. Sanchez Kinkade said it\u2019s even more special to see the imagery depict real people from the community. (Christine Vo | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n![\"(Christine](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/20260915_PinkBus-4-1024x683.jpg\")
Rich Andreski, president and CEO of Trinity Metro, speaks during Trinity Metro\u2019s unveiling of La L\u00ednea Rosa buses Sept. 15, 2026, in Fort Worth. (Christine Vo | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n![\"(Christine](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/20260915_PinkBus-8-1024x683.jpg\")
Camille Monta\u00f1ez, account director for Pulsar Advertising, left, and Glenn Miller, director of marketing for Trinity Metro, look at one of the new buses during Trinity Metro\u2019s unveiling of La L\u00ednea Rosa Sept. 15, 2026, in Fort Worth. (Christine Vo | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n![\"(Christine](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/20260915_PinkBus-6-1024x683.jpg\")
Photos of community members line the roof of one of Trinity Metro\u2019s new La L\u00ednea Rosa buses Sept. 15, 2026, in Fort Worth. (Christine Vo | Fort Worth Report)<\/p>\n