6.17. Looking Ahead: Core Investment as a Citywide Priority The analysis documented in this section makes a clear and actionable case: Fort Worth can successfully pursue a Core-focused growth strategy, but doing so requires deliberate, coordinated investment across land use, roadway, and transit. Key corridors alone will not be able to absorb the city’s Core growth aspirations. New solutions are needed to offset future growth across corridors, capacity, and modes, and those solutions must be developed in step with the development activity they are intended to support. For the Master Transportation Plan, these findings carry several specific implications. ■ First, the five CtC priority projects should be treated as long-term plan commitments and advanced through environmental review, design, and programming as development activity in their respective sub-areas intensifies . The Stockyards eastern access and Panther Island/I-35W connection are well positioned for early advancement given prior NCTCOG identification. The Main Street Pedestrian Zone can advance in coordination with Downtown Fort Worth, Inc. and the City’s public realm programming. The Belknap-
■ Finally, the scenario analysis provides a transparent, data-driven foundation for ongoing decision-making. The results do not prescribe a single path forward; they illuminate the tradeoffs between alternatives and the conditions under which different investments perform best. As development activity in the Core evolves and transit planning advances, the scenario framework can be updated to test new assumptions and refine investment priorities. This approach of keeping planning and investment decisions connected to a clear analytical foundation is how Fort Worth’s transportation system can evolve in step with its growth vision.
Weatherford connection and Spur 280 redesign require additional engineering work before programming, and that work should begin in the next planning cycle. ■ Second, transit investment is not a complement to the Core growth strategy; it is a precondition for it. The benchmarking analysis shows clearly that cities achieving the density levels the AOS scenario targets also have robust high-capacity transit. The transit techway network vision provides a framework for that investment, and the transit priority area analysis identifies where near-term service improvements would have the most immediate effect. Coordination with Trinity Metro and NCTCOG on specific corridor investments should be a near-term priority. ■ Third, the AOS scenario requires alignment across transportation, land use policy, development standards, public realm investment, and economic development strategy. Major development in the Core Area is not currently well coordinated with capacity needs. The Master Transportation Plan is one essential element of an aligned strategy, but it works best when the other elements are in place as well. The land use mismatch analysis identifies where that coordination needs to happen most urgently.
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Fort Worth Master Transportation Plan | Multimodal Gap Analysis
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