The Silver Line is fitted with DART’s signature colors and sleek design. DART and Stadler have equipped the vehicles with closed-cell, noise absorbing polyethylene foam in the bogie (truck) areas of the vehicle. This material is limited to the bogie (truck) areas, since there are no other noise sources below the vehicle. This material has been in use on Stadler FLIRT (Fast Light Intercity and Regional Train) vehicles for the “S-Bahn Stuttgart” (Stuttgart’s commuter rail system) for over 5 years with no reported issues. DART has also added wheel skirts, HVAC enclosures (bafflers) and variable speed cooling fans to the vehicle to also dampen the noise

The Silver Line will be a nice, comfortable ride for passengers. Each vehicle is equipped with 230 seats which includes fixed seats, flip-up seats, and multi-directional seats. At full capacity, a vehicle can accommodate up to 485 passengers.

Closed Circuit Television Systems (CCTV) will be used to monitor every Silver Line vehicle. These on-board internal and external camera systems feature recording capabilities that can be remotely monitored by DART Police from a manned central monitoring station and other remote locations. In addition, there will be daily inspection, tests and maintenance plus regularly scheduled preventative maintenance to identify and correct problems before they occur. Please note that there will be no cameras in the parking lots of the stations. Cameras will only be on the vehicles, platforms, and stations.

The Silver Line vehicles are electric diesel multiple units (DMU) equipped with the strictest EPA Tier 4 compliant diesel engines to help reduce the emissions of particulate matter and oxides of nitrogen. One single DMU vehicle is comprised of 2 cab cars, 2 coach cars, and 1 engine module (power pack). DMUs have many benefits, including being self-contained, self-propelled (meaning use of a locomotive is not required) and having lower maintenance costs compared to other types of trains. The DMU can be operated from both ends of the vehicle. Except during a towing of a disabled vehicle, only one vehicle will operate at a time for revenue service.

DART has a total of eight Silver Line vehicles. There will be five cars in operation and three as spares. The three vehicles will be in the maintenance cycle and rotated out so the other vehicles can be maintained on a regular basis. All Silver Line vehicles will be cleaned and disinfected prior to use every day. This means they are cleaned and disinfected each night at the end of service. Each seat is completely wiped down with a cleaning/disinfecting solution. Currently DART provides a “misted” cleaning of the entire interior which has been performed since the COVID pandemic and was also enforced during the Ebola epidemic a few years ago. Each vehicle will also have a monthly “deep cleaning” which includes the dropping of ceiling inserts, electrical cabinets etc. The cleaning program requirements are laid out in the contract between DART and Stadler and will be adhered to as well.

DART anticipates weekday service for the Silver Line to be from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. However, it’s possible that service hours could be as early as 5:00 a.m. or as late as 11:00 p.m. The Silver Line will run every 60 minutes, and during peak hours, such as weekday commute times, it will run every 30 minutes. Final hours of operation and vehicle frequency will be outlined in the service plan.