DART outlines reimagine DART plan, warns member withdrawals and federal rules could affect service

Amanda Wonke, chief executive officer of Des Moines Area Regional Transit (DART), told the Polk County Board of Supervisors on an unspecified date that DART is beginning a regional network redesign called “reimagine DART” and that the commission has asked consultants to model options under a cost-neutral first scenario.

The presentation framed DART as both an economic driver and a social-equity service. “Last year, we provided 3,500,000 trips, more than the airport,” Wonke said, adding that nearly nine of 10 trips are for people going to work or to spend money. She said average weekday ridership is about 12,000 and that riders disproportionately come from lower-income households — “we only have 4% who have a household income of $75,000 or more,” she said — and include veterans, seniors and people without driver’s licenses.

Wonke described specific partnerships with Polk County: the county helps fund senior meal-site trips (about 20,000 trips in fiscal 2024), supports a veterans-ride-free program launched about seven years ago, and pays part of a community mobility coordinator position shared between DART and Polk County. She said the county also helps subsidize Ride to Thrive, a low-income half-fare program that has about 1,400 enrolled riders in its current iteration.

Wh…