From its core cities of Dallas and Fort Worth, this region’s population is spilling out in all directions. Demographers have projected that North Texas will add 4 million residents by 2050, bringing this area’s total population to about 12 million.
That’s almost as many people as lived in the entire state in 1973, according to the Texas State Library and Archives Commission website. And that means local and state officials have a lot of work ahead to accommodate all those new neighbors. Those new residents need places to live, roads and other transit to take them to jobs and schools, and water to drink, bathe in and cool the increasing numbers of data processing centers also located here.
This newspaper’s Future of North Texas initiative will allow readers to understand and reflect on the effects of all that growth. The newsroom team producing this community-funded project includes four reporters, including one who specializes in analyzing troves of data, and a photojournalist. The initiative has its own landing page, which we encourage readers to explore.
It is exciting to live in the place that many people from outside the Lone Star State want to call home. But without extensive planning, potential opportunities could become nightmares.
Opinion
As the initiative’s reporting shows, the vast majority of North Texas workers drive alone to their jobs, and their average commute time is a half-hour. The percentage of highways considered acceptably smooth has declined from 90% in 2017 to about 77% in 2023. Major road construction projects snarl traffic in almost every part of the region.
Meanwhile, Dallas Area Rapid Transit, the public transit system that serves mostly Dallas County, is struggling to respond to low ridership and threats to withdraw from some member cities. Denton County’s Transit Authority has seen ridership grow. Is this region forever wedded to concrete freeways and internal combustion engines or does public transit have a bright future here?
Another concern is the efficient use of existing infrastructure. As growth expands outward, what happens to core cities and inner suburbs, which often have more low-income households and aging infrastructure? How do these places compete with new exurbs? How do the outer-ring suburbs avoid obsolescence four decades in the future? Balanced growth, which includes a mix of housing types, as well as commercial development, is more sustainable but politically tricky.
We also foresee the growth colliding with several hallowed Texas values. Among them are decentralization and limited regulation. For example, with another 4 million people moving in, counties may need to better coordinate emergency services in unincorporated areas.
This newsroom’s reporting initiative will help readers — and leaders — create the future they want to see.
We welcome your thoughts in a letter to the editor. See the guidelines and submit your letter here.
If you have problems with the form, you can submit via email at letters@dallasnews.com