News

The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART) has released its draft Fiscal Year 2026 Program of Projects (POP), outlining how federal transit funding may be used to support public transportation in the Greater Des Moines area.

Buses and DART Paratransit will follow a Saturday schedule on: 

• Christmas Eve - Wednesday, December 24
• New Year's Eve - Wednesday, December 31

DART On Demand Ankeny will offer regular weekday hours on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve.

Beginning this summer, the new network will improve travel times and access to transit

Today, the DART Commission approved the first major redesign of bus routes and services in more than a decade. DART’s new network will increase transit access and speed up travel times for most transit trips while reducing service by 10% to limit property tax growth.

DART will install 10 new bus shelters after the DART Commission approved a contract for the work at its November 4 meeting. Work on the shelters will be completed this winter as weather permits.

Throughout 2025, DART has worked with its member communities and riders to reimagine the bus routes and services DART should deliver. DART received multiple rounds of public feedback before developing a final bus network plan this fall. DART's governing board, the DART Commission, is preparing to adopt the final bus network in December. 

Click here to view the final map, learn about changes DART made this fall, see turn-by-turn directions and bus stop locations, and leave a comment. 

Your vote matters and we're here to help you get to the polls!

Local and Express bus services are free to ride on Election Day, Tuesday, November 4. Bus Plus trips to and from polling locations are also free. 

The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART) provided 3,753,065 rides across all transit services in Fiscal Year 2025 (July 2024 – June 2025), an increase of nearly 7% from the previous year.

About 95% of DART’s ridership is on its fixed bus routes, which increased slightly more than 7% to 3,579,974 rides last year. DART carried an average of 17.6 passengers per hour of service on its fixed bus routes, making it the most efficient of DART’s services.

DART will not have bus service and DART Central Station will be closed on Labor Day, Monday, September 1, 2025. 

Bus service will operate normally on the weekend after the holiday. More information about DART’s holiday service is available at ridedart.com/holiday. 

The smartest way to get to the fair!

• Get dropped off directly on the fairgrounds in an air-conditioned ride.

• Safety first! Avoid walking or driving in the traffic around the fairgrounds.

• Find free parking in large, dedicated lots.

DART made minor schedule changes on some local routes beginning Sunday, August 24, 2025. The following routes have had changes: