6.13. Core Area Transportation Needs Assessment Achieving any of the three growth scenarios, but particularly the AOS vision, requires a transportation network capable of supporting it. The CtC Needs Assessment was conducted to identify the specific capacity, connectivity, safety, and operational challenges that currently limit access to and through the Core Area and that would become significantly more constraining as growth intensifies. The assessment combined field observations, targeted data analysis, stakeholder discussions, and travel demand modeling to develop a comprehensive picture of existing and future needs. Fifteen priority need statements were identified, organized around five sub-areas: Panther Island and Rock Island to Stockyards; West 7th and the Cultural District; Downtown Access; Butler Place and United Riverside; and Near Southside. Together these needs reflect five cross-cutting themes recurring across the Core.
6.13.1. Sub-Area Needs Panther Island / Rock Island to Stockyards Connectivity between Panther Island, Downtown, and the Stockyards depends heavily on the 28th Street (SH 183) and N Main Street (Bus US 287) corridors, both heavily congested and constrained by railroad crossings. Improving connectivity requires new Trinity River crossings, railroad grade separations, roadway extensions, improved IH-35W access, and dedicated transit right-of-way. The need for an alternative route to the Stockyards beyond the congested 28th Street and Main Street corridors is one of the most pressing identified in the CtC assessment. West 7th / Cultural District The Cultural District is a major employment and visitor destination, but connections to Downtown and points north are constrained by limited river crossings and rail congestion. The result is that West 7th Street carries a disproportionate share of access traffic. Proposed improvements focus on adding crossings, reconfiguring existing roadways, and introducing dedicated transit corridors to relieve pressure on West 7th while broadening multimodal options.
Core Area Cross-Cutting Transportation Needs ■ Capacity and Connectivity: Bridges, underpasses, and key corridors function as bottlenecks, limiting both vehicle movement and transit operations. Network gaps reduce route choices and concentrate traffic on a small number of facilities. ■ High-Capacity Transit Integration : Several key corridors and districts require dedicated right-of-way or new infrastructure to support high-capacity transit, particularly where development density and trip volumes are projected to increase most sharply under the AOS scenario. ■ Safety and Operational Efficiency: Intersection geometry and circulation patterns at major downtown gateways, including Henderson/ Belknap and Weatherford, create safety hazards and travel time penalties that worsen with additional growth. ■ Floodplain and Rail Constraints: Physical constraints imposed by the Trinity River floodplain and the BNSF and TRE rail corridors limit where new connections can be built and add complexity and cost to proposed solutions. ■ Public Realm and Vibrancy : Opportunities exist throughout the Core to improve pedestrian environments, integrate transit hubs with adjacent development, and create public spaces that support walkable, mixed-use activity patterns.
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Multimodal Gap Analysis | Fort Worth Master Transportation Plan
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