Trinity Metro officials say they are ready for throngs of expected out-of-town visitors for the FIFA World Cup.
The Fort Worth transit agency has leased 40 charter buses and added extra trains to the Trinity Railway Express to help transport the large crowds who are expected to visit North Texas for the games starting in Arlington in a couple weeks. Special shuttles offering expanded service to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and shopping areas in Fort Worth and Arlington will also debut for the tournament.
Anette Landeros, chief strategy officer for Trinity Metro, said one big question remains — how many people will show up?
“We’ve been preparing for about a year and a half now. But we have recognized that we don’t know what we don’t know, and we don’t know that until we get started,” Landeros said. “We’re all reminding each other to be prepared to learn on the go and to pivot and make adjustments as needed when we find out what kind of crowds we can actually anticipate. … We’re ready to be flexible and adjust to the needs of the community.”
The agency added a “Cowtown Visitor Shuttle” bus service on nongame days to move people to Fort Worth tourist spots and Arlington’s Entertainment District. The shuttle will cost $9 — about the same as a regional transit day pass.
Three premium shuttle buses, donning a bright green and white “Howdy” logo with a soccer ball in place of the “o,” will operate on a 15-minute schedule. The buses will stop at the Fort Worth Zoo, the Fort Worth Botanic Garden and shopping areas in Fort Worth and Arlington.
In the Alliance area, buses will take visitors to the Tanger Outlets Fort Worth and Buc-ee’s while another visitor shuttle will frequent the Fort Worth Stockyards and 7th Street for shopping and restaurants.
Charter buses will be used so that the Trinity Metro transit system isn’t affected by game visitors, she said.
More domestic travelers are expected to attend the games than international visitors, Landeros said. The agency worked with Arlington leaders to schedule the shuttles into the Entertainment District.
“This is giving us the opportunity to really understand the potential interest,” she said.
About 35% to 50% of the 700,000 tickets have been sold for World Cup matches in Arlington, KERA reported. The first five matches have had the most ticket sales, Arlington Deputy City Manager Jennifer Wichmann told council members. The percentage of ticket sales comes from the latest information provided to the city from World Cup officials “a couple of weeks ago,” she said.
Trinity Metro officials are ready to move people to the games.
In addition, the Trinity Railway Express has been upgraded with additional cars to move people to CentrePort Station, south of DFW Airport. From there, buses will transport passengers to Arlington’s AT&T Stadium, dubbed Dallas Stadium for the duration of the games.
Blue and yellow Northstar train cars from Minnesota were integrated seamlessly with the TRE, Landeros said. “They are out there moving people currently,” she added.
The buses, officials have said, will help Trinity Metro be flexible. The leases are on a “pay-as-you-go” basis, with money spent dependent upon how many vehicles are used.
“We don’t expect to use all the funds,” Reed Lantham, Trinity Metro chief operating officer, said at a Nov. 17 Trinity Metro meeting.
Hotel, short-term rentals
There are currently about 198,000 listings for hotel rooms and short-term rentals across the region — a 13.2% increase since last June, according to data from AirDNA.
Fort Worth is seeing about 40% of hotel rooms and short-term rentals booked up in advance of the June 21 game between Austria and Argentina. There is a 48% occupancy rate in advance of the June 27 game between Argentina and Jordan, data shows.
Hotel room and short-term rental demand is high in Arlington, east Fort Worth and Dallas, AirDNA data shows.
More than 5 million people are expected to attend at least one of the 104 soccer matches in 16 host cities across the United States, Mexico and Canada. The games are scheduled between June 11 and July 19.
“A large share of bookings is still to come, and demand is expected to accelerate as match dates approach,” AirDNA officials said in a statement.
Eric E. Garcia is senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org.
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