#39 | Randall Bryant: 120 Days to Save DART and Its 13 Cities

Randall Bryant was elected chair of DART on October 28. The next day, six member cities began moving toward withdrawal elections.More on Randall Bryant and this episode: thedealtablepodcast.com/episodes/randall-bryantThose cities represented 650,000 residents and about 33 percent of DART's general fund revenue, and he had roughly 120 days to keep a 13 city, $1.6 billion transit system from losing 30 percent of its revenue and its service. He had been on the board less than two years, with no transit experience at all.The negotiation is the substance. Cities wanted 25 percent of their sales tax back, a number produced by an Ernst and Young study behind House Bill 3187. DART countered with a guaranteed minimum of 5 percent rising to 10 percent over six years, for all 13 cities, built on a $42.5 million general mobility program that seven cities had never claimed. Plano, Irving and Farmers Branch rescinded and took the deal. His board passed it 14 to 1.He also lays out the consequences nobody was discussing. State law stops all five modes of service the day a city leaves. If light rail goes dark, decades-old environmental covenants put the region out of air quality attainment and the sanctions arrive as lane closures. Two thirds of DART riders are transit dependent, including his father, who is 90 percent blind.Randall Bryant is the chair of the DART board of directors and the youngest person to hold the seat. He grew up in Hamilton Park in Dallas and led the negotiation that kept the 13 member cities of the $1.6 billion transit system together.KEY MOMENTS00:00 The youngest DART chair02:50 Elected on October 28, then everything03:56 120 days, or lose 30% of revenue15:18 The ask: 25% of sales tax back22:10 The board passes it 14 to 124:05 If a city leaves, service stops29:16 75% of riders back, BART under 50%33:31 His father, 90% blind, rides DART51:26 Every $1 in transit returns $501:07:43 The EPA sanctions nobody discussedNewsletter: thedealtablepodcast.com/connectLane Carrick on selling a business, The Optima Advantage: amzn.to/48nLElWFollow The Deal Table: YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, XThe Deal Table is hosted by Ryan Harper and Lane Carrick, filmed in Dallas, and produced by Harper Belmont Media.Sponsored by Capital Southwest.