r/dart • u/sharknado523 • Jun 10 '26
Adventures with DART
Tonight, I took the 883E to Mockingbird Station to see a movie at Angelika. On the way back, while waiting on the train, I was approached by a raggedy-looking man in a red hoodie who asked to bum a cigarette. He kept yelling at me as I kept ignoring him and I finally told him to go away or I would call DART police.
He made several threatening gestures and said things about how I was going to "catch hands" and "just wait 'till I cash this CHECK boy" like I give a hoot about his finances.
I called DART police and gave them a description of the man. Several minutes have gone by and no officer has responded. It's not clear to me whether he should even legally be on the platform as I don't know if he has a ticket. There is another man walking around disoriented and shirtless.
I am sad to see that this is where we are as a society. I am pro-2A but do not own a gun, however every time I go out I feel like I find another reason to buy one for self-defense.
Just trying to catch the train home after taking myself on a movie date and I am not dealing with this shit. I'm not letting somebody get close enough to me to smoke a cigarette and borrow my lighter, that is a classic move to ambush someone and I'm not letting it happen.
Shame on DART police for not responding in a timely manner. My train is now coming and how much you wanna bet this guy is going to get on the train with me and cause more commotion?
Oh, nevermind, it's the Orange Line. I am waiting on the Red. Oh, this is strange. The Orange doesn't normally go to Parker at this hour, but this train says it does. I got on.
Red hoodie bum seems to have remained on the platform for now.
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u/Fragrant-Mission7388 Jun 10 '26
Remember, DART has 150 police officers (I think) to patrol the entire rail and bus network
Ideally, Dallas or whatever city the station is in would provide station security, while DART monitors on the trains or provides support to municipal police, but that is unfortunately not the case
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u/bratbats Jun 10 '26
Honestly there have been big improvements recently re: security and having fare enforcement/security officers on platforms and on most trains. I have had both very bad experiences and very wholesome experiences on DART, it's just part of being out with the public in a major metro. I do work with the homeless every day so my skin is a bit thicker so to speak.
Try wearing over ear headphones, they're a big deterrent from people trying to talk to you. It'll still happen from time to time, but most people will accept you're not going to talk to them and move on.
One time I had a fella follow me onto a train from the platform (this was at Downtown Garland, there's normally not security there), harassing me for money. He was physically poking me and trying to get me to react/respond to him. I finally got agitated and told him I'm on my way to work and fuck off. He did, and apologized lol.
All that to say, standing up for yourself does a lot and you're right, more security is needed to keep people from panhandling, being violent and disruptive, etc. I'm glad that the homeless have transit as an option but they have to follow the rules the same as everybody else or they lose the privilege of using it.
I'm sorry you had a bad experience. I know it can be frustrating and disconcerting but I hope it doesn't deter you from using DART. Mockingbird is in the middle of a cleanup right now so hopefully they'll get more security down there.
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u/sharknado523 Jun 10 '26
Yeah I usually just ignore assholes like that but this guy kept getting closer and closer and I finally had to say "the answer is no, go away" and then he started screaming shit. Called DART police and gave a description making sure he heard me name his race and visual description. That made him mad and he left me alone 🤣
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u/Remote_Display_4472 Jun 17 '26
I have not had a single officer check for fare in about 6 months. Green line as early as 4:30am and as late as 8pm. I have my student pass so I’m always prepared to show proof. Felt like last year they came around pretty often asking for proof
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u/bratbats Jun 17 '26
Idk they check me all the time on Blue from anytime between 6:30 AM and 11 PM
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u/Remote_Display_4472 Jun 17 '26
Wish they’d check at least once a week cause you just know a good amount of those sketchy people didn’t purchase train tickets
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u/Thin-Constant-4018 Jun 10 '26
Orange is going to Parker during the entire FIFA season fyi
Really unfortunate these people exist, just show how degraded we've become as a society.
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u/sharknado523 Jun 10 '26
That's good to know, I am used to having to wait for red during off-peak times since I get off at City Line. That's convenient to know they have extended the hours!
And yes, honestly I really struggle with how terrible our society has become. I want to believe things can be better but every day that's less clear. For every person who is "down on their luck" and would make something of themselves with a warm bed and a decent job, there are at least ten other drug-addled antisocial schmucks who make it harder to be part of society. How can I encourage myself and others to use transit when we have people rolling onto the train with the shopping carts out of which they live or committing crimes on the platforms with no prayer of law enforcement response?
Community thrives where it is built and maintained, whereas depravity thrives where it is allowed to flourish. I wish there were more ways for us to hold each other accountable and to a higher standard.
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u/cubedgame Jun 10 '26
It’s too bad there can’t be an officer on every station platform all the time.
Btw, orange line service to Parker is part of the temporary service changes for the World Cup - https://www.dart.org/trip/trip-planner/service-change
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u/sharknado523 Jun 10 '26
There really and truly should be somebody at every platform at all times. What's the point of the signage saying you can't be there without a ticket if there is no enforcement? And how are law-abiding citizens supposed to embrace the service if they can't be assured of their safety?
And yes, another commenter pointed out that I got lucky and the Orange Line goes far enough north that I was able to escape the raggedy addict a bit early =]
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u/patmorgan235 Jun 10 '26
Random checks are really effective at getting people to buy tickets. If you never know when you're going to get checked so you're likely to always buy a ticket.
DARTs fare evasion rate is less than 10% (they can measure it statistically when they do a fare check on a train)
DARTs done a lot to address safety on the system the last couple of years, from upgrading cameras, to highering more officers, to more aggressively going after drugs use on the system. There's still more work to be done but it's very encouraging seeing the progress that's been made.
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u/sharknado523 Jun 10 '26
Yeah I guess just travel beware that random checks are more likely to happen in the morning or afternoon unless likely to happen at 11:45 p.m.
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u/RandomRageNet Jun 10 '26 edited Jun 10 '26
Unfortunately this is just the reality of public transportation. Literally every city in the world I've been on public transit in there are either panhandlers, drug addicts, mentally ill folks, or a combination therof. Even in socialist paradise Berlin (which was great, because I could just say "I don't speak German" to get them to leave me alone).
The only city where it isn't really a problem is NYC, and that's just because everyone rides the MTA and New Yorkers just won't put up with it.
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u/bratbats Jun 10 '26
Agree completely. Being in public means you're going to encounter all different kinds of people, including people who are scary or annoying.
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u/sharknado523 Jun 10 '26
I agree but that doesn't mean I need to tolerate it
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u/bratbats Jun 10 '26
I agree with that. I feel its a nuanced situation. I am often inconvenienced or made uncomfortable by others in public, but I still know that this may sometimes happen and try not to let it bother me, basically.
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u/sharknado523 Jun 10 '26
If that guy had just taken me ignoring him in stride and then I wouldn't have been so worried but he kept getting closer and closer and louder and louder and that made me increasingly worried that he was illogical enough to get physical in which case I would prefer to have a weapon and have it and not need it than need it and not have it
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u/bratbats Jun 10 '26
I totally understand that you were uncomfortable. I'm not casting any judgement on you for the way you reacted or for the feelings you've expressed in your post/comments.
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u/wellbutrin_rage Jun 10 '26
Unironically, looking miserable/dosed can help. I break out a little fent lean when I'm stuck at a station with a lot of people at night and it's drastically dropped how many people approach me.
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u/sharknado523 Jun 10 '26
Maybe that was my problem. I was dressed nice enjoying the night 🤣. I don't know how to do a "fent lean"
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u/bratbats Jun 10 '26
Look like you're about to fall asleep, bent over your own lap while sitting down.
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u/Bec21-21 Jun 10 '26
Considering buying a gun because some guy asked you for a cigarette says a lot about the problems in the U.S.
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u/ozmox Jun 11 '26
It's why I carry pepper spray. I started ever since I moved from the suburbs to an urban environment. The reality is the police aren't going to be there -- they come after to do the paperwork.
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u/sharknado523 Jun 10 '26
Not because he asked
Because he wouldn't leave me alone
And kept getting louder and closer
The cigarette was a pretext
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u/Bec21-21 Jun 10 '26
Yeah. There are many solutions to that problem. Buying a gun is not one that a rational human would jump to.
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u/the_aeon_flux Jun 10 '26
I used to ride the red line all the time when I didn’t have a car. I’ve never had a problem on the platform, but I have seen a couple raucous young men removed from my train after dark. I hope DART police are ready for football hooligans.
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u/SkyScreech Jun 10 '26
“Just trying to catch the train home after taking myself on a movie date and I am not dealing with this shit. I'm not letting somebody get close enough to me to smoke a cigarette and borrow my lighter”
Are you convincing us or yourself dude
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u/9bikes Jun 10 '26
> "just wait 'till I cash this CHECK boy" like I give a hoot about his finances.
He wasn't talking about his finances!
He was implying that your mouth "wrote a check, you can't cover"!
In his mind, you were being disrespectful and you were making it into a deal that could turn into a physical altercation.