Dallas targets spring 2029 for long delayed Joppa pedestrian bridge

The Dallas City Council authorized an estimated $523,000 agreement with Union Pacific for a pedestrian crossing over railroad tracks near Linfield Road in the Joppa neighborhood. City officials said the project now targets a completion date in spring 2029. The agreement sets how much the railroad will charge the city to oversee and coordinate construction.

Residents in the historic southern Dallas neighborhood have waited years for a safe pedestrian route. The community is zoned for industrial use and is surrounded by railroad lines, major highways, and the Trinity River, which leaves very few options for getting in and out of the area.

Residents previously voted in 2018 to allow Union Pacific to permanently close a surface pedestrian crossing on the condition that a dedicated pedestrian bridge would replace it. Without that safe crossing, residents have had to walk beside speeding vehicles on narrow roads or squeeze between stationary train cars to reach their homes.

Financial backing for the project gathered momentum when regional transportation planners approved funding in 2019. Construction timelines shifted repeatedly from an initial completion target of 2023 to a planned start in 2024 before settling on the current 2029 completion window.

The city transportation department estimated the overall cost of the pedestrian bridge at $10 million. The department said the extended timeline is due to extensive coordination required with the railroad company, the Texas Department of Transportation, and the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

City officials announced that the newly approved contract grants necessary right-of-way permissions for the construction work. Transportation department representatives said that engineering and coordination phases are continuing toward the spring 2029 opening.