Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) has commenced construction on its new Silver Line Equipment Maintenance Facility in Plano.
The facility is situated behind a recently acquired 20,000-square-foot office building at 3201 Technology Drive in Plano's industrial district. This building will serve as the operations and maintenance hub for the Silver Line staff once the rail line becomes operational. The construction site spans approximately 14 acres within DART's rail right-of-way, located near the end of the Silver Line track alignment and a short distance from the Shiloh Road Station.
Designed to support the housing, cleaning, and maintenance of Silver Line vehicles, the facility will include two new buildings, an underground fueling tank, a canopy-covered fueling area, and a storage yard for the fleet. By establishing the maintenance facility in Plano, DART anticipates saving over USD 30 million in capital costs and nearly USD 1 million in annual operating expenses compared to utilizing a shared facility off the Silver Line alignment. The proximity to the Shiloh Road Station is expected to reduce the number of non-revenue trips required to start daily operations and allow for more efficient responses to operational issues.
Once completed, the Silver Line Equipment Maintenance Facility will be the fourth regional rail facility in North Texas and the only one in Collin County, joining existing facilities in Irving (TRE), Lewisville (DCTA), and Fort Worth (Trinity Metro). The 40,000-square-foot complex is projected to employ 65 current and new permanent staff members, with capacity for future expansion.
Local residents and commuters have become familiar with the Silver Line trains through simulated test runs between the Shiloh Road Station in Plano and the University of Texas at Dallas Station in Richardson, which began earlier this summer. Testing on other segments of the 26-mile corridor, stretching from Plano to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, will continue ahead of the anticipated start of revenue service in late 2025 or early 2026.
