26-04-2025
Passenger train between OKC, Fort Worth could soon see its last ride
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — The only passenger train in Oklahoma could soon see its last ride.
The Heartland Flyer has been running daily between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth since 1999 and last year alone, saw over 80,000 passengers.
'My family has always used the Heartland Flyer as kind of like a weekend getaway to go down to Fort Worth for an afternoon,' said Braden Hamilton, rides train.
Hamilton says he's been riding the train since he was a little boy and is devastated to see it may go away.
'I'm afraid that we won't see rail travel in Oklahoma again for you know, at least my lifetime,' said Hamilton.
The Heartland Flyer is a jointly funded partnership between ODOT and TXDOT, using each state's tax dollars.
However, this year the Texas legislature left their share out of the budget.
'In Oklahoma, you're very lucky because the appropriation is baked into your transportation budget, so you don't have to worry about that. In Texas, we have to go before the legislature every two years and basically beg for a very small amount of funding for the Heartland Flyer,' said Peter LeCody, president of Texas Rail Advocates.
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation says it's closely monitoring the Texas legislative actions regarding their share of funding for the Heartland Flyer and are hopeful the funding will continue to be available.
The Texas Department of Transportation says they can't comment on pending legislation.
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We also reached out to Amtrak, which operates the route and they said funding decisions for state-sponsored services are determined locally.
LeCody says time is running out for action to be taken.
'It's kind of variable right now, but it's either next week or the week after, so, I mean, we're down to just days to being able to fund the Heartland Flyer from the Texas side,' said LeCody.
He says losing the train would hurt both Texas and Oklahoma.
'If it should go away because of budget constraints in Texas, we're going to be putting probably more than 50,000 vehicles back on Interstate 35 and that's not a good deal,' said LeCody.
It could also have an economic impact on both states.
'For every dollar that each state puts into the Heartland Flyer, it returns more than five dollars in economic benefits,' said LeCody.
Plans to expand the Heartland Flyer would also be no longer.
'The Oklahoma legislature and the Kansas legislature have been working very diligently to extend service on the Heartland Flyer up to Kansas. If Texas, for some reason, can't find four million dollars a year to be able to run the Heartland Flyer with their portion of expenses, then that puts the northern extension in jeopardy,' said LeCody.
If funding isn't secured in Texas, the last ride could be as soon as the end of June.
Oklahoma who want to see the rides continue are encouraged to reach out to Texas lawmakers and encourage them to continue the funding.
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