June 2, 2025 Updated - TRA Austin -

Regular funding for the daily train that runs between Fort Worth, Gainesville and Oklahoma CIty, as requested by the Texas Department of Transportation, was pulled by budget lawmakers in Austin and was not included in the $338 billion budget that was just sent to the Texas Comptroller.

Other means of funding the Texas portion of the Heartland Flyer are now being discussed at the local, regional and state level.

The looming discontinuance of the train would affect students travelling to universities in both states, leisure travel that brings passengers spending their tourist dollars in Fort Worth, passengers that connect with local, regional transit providers and the intercity Texas Eagle, residents of Gainesville that travel to the Fort Worth Medical District for treatment, and a myriad of other passengers that use the daily lifeline to connect to Gainesville and other smaller Oklahoma cities. 

The $7.2 million two-year budget landed up in "Article 11", where appropriations go to die. This is in stark contrast to many other legislative sessions where the Heartland Flyer was funded without an issue. 

The train has operated since 1999 and is a partnered service of the Texas and Oklahoma Department of Transportation. Ridership and revenue was on the upswing and the train generated almost $24 million in economic activity against it's yearly $2.6 million normal allocation from the state of Texas.

In the 2025 session, the Texas Transportation Commission added an "Exceptional Item" of $1 million a year  to account for inflation and increased costs. That out-of-normal-budget request was scratched as well.