Des Moines Area Regional Transit
Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority operates mass transit service in Greater Des Moines. It is the largest public transit agency operating in the state of Iowa.
History
DART was founded in 1973 as the Des Moines Metropolitan Transit Authority, commonly known as the MTA. Formed by a partnership of the cities of Des Moines, West Des Moines, Clive, Windsor Heights, and Urbandale. The MTA eventually developed a 14-county carpool and vanpool system in addition to its bus system.By 2006, population growth in varying regions of central Iowa led to Polk County and nineteen cities forming a regional transportation agency following changes to Iowa law in 2005.
Sunday service was added for the first time in 2007. In 2008, a free shuttle linked downtown Des Moines with the Iowa State Capitol.
DART has offered a Park & Ride service during the Iowa State Fair since 2006.
Free wifi connectivity began to be offered on all buses in 2018. This was implemented at the same time new fareboxes were installed, which required an internet connection.
DART began a pilot electric bus program in October 2020, starting with seven Proterra Catalyst buses on route 60. The pilot program was funded by a grant from the Federal Transit Administration, with a local match from MidAmerican Energy. Due to numerous issues with the buses, including suspension and weatherproofing issues, all seven buses were sidelined in fall 2022 shortly before their major manufacturer warranties expired. Despite attempts from Proterra technicians to address the issues, they were never fully resolved, and the buses were retired from the DART fleet in early 2025.
DART is represented by a board of 12 Commissioners, one from each member government it serves. DART serves Altoona, Ankeny, Bondurant, Clive, Des Moines, Grimes, Johnston, Pleasant Hill, Urbandale, West Des Moines, Windsor Heights, and greater Polk County.
In 2023 the system received 10,808 boardings on weekdays, 5,237 on Saturdays and 3,335 on Sundays
Structure
DART utilizes a hub and spoke system, designed to favor commuters, as opposed to point-to-point system. The network was redesigned in 2012 to utilize the new DART Central Station, which most local and express routes terminate at or pass through. A secondary hub around Valley West Mall connects multiple western routes. A northern crosstown route 50 was added in 2018.DART also has On Call routes that operate within specific zones in the Greater Des Moines area.
DART Central Station
Located at 620 Cherry Street in downtown Des Moines, DART Central station serves as the primary hub of the DART system. The $21 million bus transfer station opened in November 2012 on the south end of downtown, ending decades of using Walnut Street as a transit mall. DART Central Station has been certified LEED Platinum, the highest certification of the LEED Rating System of the U.S. Green Building Council. The site was selected in part due to proximity of the historic Rock Island Railroad depot, which is hoped to have passenger rail service in the future. It was designed by Substance Architecture, built by Weitz Construction, and contains both a bicycle storage room and a cafe.Routes
Local routes
| Route | Name | Description |
| 1 | Fairgrounds | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - Locust Street - Pennsylvania Avenue - East Grand Avenue - East 30th Street - East University Avenue - East 33rd Street - Easton Boulevard - East 38st Street - Hubbell Avenue - Hubbell Avenue & East 42nd Street |
| 3 | University | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - University Avenue - Apple Valley - Buffalo Road - Westown Parkway - 28th Street - University Avenue - 31st Street - Valley West Mall |
| 4 | E 14st St | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - Locust Street - 2nd Avenue - Grand Avenue - East Grand Avenue - East 15th Street - East 14th Street - East Euclid Avenue - Park Fair Mall |
| 5 | Franklin Ave / Johnston | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - Grand Avenue - 10th Street - Woodland Avenue - 31st Street - 30th Street - Clark Street - 34st Street - Franklin Avenue - Merle Hay Road - Merle Hay Mall & Haymarket - Merle Hay Road - Johnston Public Library |
| 6 | Indianola Ave | DART Central Station - SW 7th - MLK Jr Parkway - SW 2st/3rd Street - Indianola Avenue - SE 14th Street and on 14th & Watrous splits into two routes: Watrous Avenue - SE 5th Street - Army Post Road - Southridge Mall SE 14th Street - Army Post Road - Southridge Mall |
| 7 | SW 9th St | DART Central Station - SW 7th Street - Tuttle Street - SW 9th Street - Army Post Road - Southridge Mall |
| 8 | Fleur Dr | Service operates between DART Central Station and Airport South Park & Ride, including destinations at Wakonda Shopping Center and Iowa Center for Higher Education. |
| 10 | East University | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - Locust Street - 2nd Avenue - Grand Avenue - E Grand Avenue - Pennsylvania Avenue - East University Avenue - N Hickoruy BLVD - Maple Dr - N Shadyview BLVD - E University Avenue - Sherrylynn - Jennifer Dr - NE 56th St - NE 12th Avenue & East University Avenue |
| 11 | Ingersoll / Valley Junction | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - Grand Avenue - 17th Street - Ingersoll Avenue - 59th Street - Grand Avenue - WEST DES MOINES - 8th Street - Elm Street - 1st Street WEST DES MOINES - Creston Avenue - SW 63rd St - Railroad Avenue - 4th St - |
| 13 | SE Park Ave | - Indianola Avenue & Evergreen - Indianola Avenue - Evergreen Avenue - SE 22st Street - East King Avenue - SE 19st Street - East Park Avenue - Indianola Avenue - Indianola Avenue & Evergreen |
| 14 | Beaver Ave | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - High Street - 15th Street - Crocker Street - Cottage Grove - 19th Street - MLK Jr Parkway - Hickman Road - 30th Street - Leado Avenue - Urbandale Avenue - Beaver Avenue - Aurora Avenue - Merle Hay Mall & Haymarket |
| 15 | 6th Ave | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - Douglas Avenue - Park Fair Mall |
| 16 | Douglas Avenue | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - Grand Avenue - 8th Street - 9th Street - University Avenue - 13th Street - Jefferson Avenue - 16th Street - Hickman Road - Broadlawns Medical Center - Hickman Road - MLK Jr Parkway - Douglas Avenue - Merle Hay Road - Merle Hay Mall & Haymarket |
| 17 | Hubbell Ave / Altoona | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - University Avenue - Hubbell Avenue - 29th Avenue - East Euclid Avenue - Hubbell Avenue - 8th Street SW - 34th Avenue SW - Adventureland Dr - Outlets of Des Moines/Altoona - Amazon shuttle Adventureland Dr - 1st Avenue N - NE 72nd Street Amazon distribution center. |
| 50 | Euclid / Douglas Crosstown* | Merle Hay Mall & Haymarket - Merle Hay Road - Douglas Avenue - Euclid Avenue - East Euclid Avenue - Hubbell Avenue - East 42nd St & Hubbell Ave *Does not to go DART Central Station |
| 52 | Valley West / Jordan Creek Crosstown | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - I-235 - Valley West Mall - I-235 - Jordan Creek Parkway - EP True Parkway - 68th Street - Jordan Creek Town Center |
| 60 | Ingersoll/University | DART Central Station - 6th Avenue - University Avenue - 42nd Street - Ingersoll Avenue - 17th Street - Locust Street - 7th Street - DART Central Station |
| 72 | West Des Moines Loop* | Service operates between DART Central Station and Airport South Park & Ride, including destinations at Wakonda Shopping Center and Iowa Center for Higher Education. Does not to go DART Central Station |
| 74 | NW Urbandale* | Operates between the Windsor Heights Walmart, Valley West Mall, Mercer/Marsh and the business parks in northwest Urbandale. Does not to go DART Central Station |
Express rush hour-only routes
| Route | Name | Route |
| 92 | Hickman Express | Downtown Des Moines - I-235 - 63rd Street - Hickman Road - 72nd Street - Buccaneer Arena - 73rd Street - Hickman Road - NW 108th Street - Clive Hotel Park&Ride - NW 111st Street - Hickman Road - Hickman & 156th Street Park & Ride |
| 93 | NW 86th Express | Downtown Des Moines - I-235 - NW 98th Street - Crescent Chase |
| 94 | Westown Express | Downtown Des Moines - I-235 - 22nd Street - Westown Parkway - Valley West Mall - Westown Parkway - Jordan Creek Parkway - Wells Fargo |
| 95 | Vista Express | Downtown Des Moines - I-235 - Valley West Drive - Ashworth Road - 39th Street - Woodland Avenue - 50th Street - Ashworth Road - Prairie View Drive - Vista Drive - Wells Fargo |
| 96 | EP True Express | Downtown Des Moines - I-235 - 73rd Street - Office Park Road - 11th Street - Ashworth Road - 13th Street - Grand Avenue - EP True Parkway - Jordan Creek Town Center |
| 98 | Ankeny Express | Downtown Des Moines - Mercy North Park & Ride - Hawkeye Park & Ride - Ankeny DMACC |
| 99 | Altoona Express | Downtown Des Moines - I-235 - East Euclid Avenue - Hubbel Avenue - SW 8th Street - Walmart - SW 8th Street - NW 5th Avenue - Adventureland Drive - Adventureland Drive & Prairie Meadows Drive |
Former routes
- 2 Kingman
- 9 Express Service
- 12 Urbandale Business Park
- 51 Merle Hay Crosstown
- 71 Ankeny / Delaware Avenue
- 73 Urbandale / Windsor Heights FLEX
- 90 Airport South Business Park Express
- 91 Merle Hay Express
- 97 SW Park Avenue Express
- Windsor Heights Express
- Urbandale Express
- Summer Special
Shuttles
- The LINK
- D-Line Shuttle discontinued November 2024
- Iowa State Fair Park & Ride Shuttle
Flex Connect in Urbandale/NW Des Moines
Flex Connect is a new on-demand service DART is testing that connects riders in the Flex Connect zone to DART buses. Flex Connect replaced Flex Route 73 in Urbandale and Windsor Heights.With Flex Connect on weekdays, riders in the zone can book an Uber, YellowCabCo. taxi or a DART accessible vehicle to take them to and from one of three transfer points: Gloria Dei Park & Ride, Buccaneer Arena Park & Ride or Merle Hay Mall. From there, riders can connect to DART buses via routes 5, 14, 16, 50, 92 or 93.
On call
Fares and Passes
Fares
The following fares are charged on the various services DART operates:Fixed Route Ridership
The ridership and service statistics shown here are of fixed route services only and do not include demand response. Per capita statistics are based on the Des Moines urbanized area as reported in NTD data. Starting in 2011, 2010 census numbers replace the 2000 census numbers to calculate per capita statistics.| Ridership | Change | Ridership per capita | |
| 2002 | 3,905,433 | n/a | 10.54 |
| 2003 | 3,748,879 | 4.01% | 10.12 |
| 2004 | 3,696,785 | 1.39% | 9.98 |
| 2005 | 3,854,006 | 4.25% | 10.4 |
| 2006 | 3,919,908 | 1.71% | 10.58 |
| 2007 | 3,987,237 | 1.72% | 10.76 |
| 2008 | 4,612,776 | 15.69% | 12.45 |
| 2009 | 4,212,082 | 8.69% | 11.37 |
| 2010 | 3,768,611 | 10.53% | 10.17 |
| 2011 | 3,909,347 | 3.73% | 8.69 |
| 2012 | 4,094,122 | 4.73% | 9.1 |
| 2013 | 4,185,756 | 2.24% | 9.3 |
| 2014 | 4,388,019 | 4.83% | 9.75 |
| 2015 | 4,413,233 | 0.57% | 9.81 |
| 2016 | 4,359,827 | 1.21% | 9.69 |
| 2017 | 4,239,530 | 2.76% | 9.42 |
| 2018 | 4,163,656 | 1.79% | 9.25 |
| 2019 | 4,061,258 | 2.46% | 9.02 |
| 2020 | 2,132,628 | 47.49% | 4.04 |
| 2021 | 2,207,078 | 3.49% | 4.18 |
| 2022 | 2,754,733 | 24.81% | 5.22 |
| 2023 | 3,222,226 | 16.97% | 6.11 |