Texas officials have provided the state’s portion of funding for an agreement with the state of Oklahoma to provide the daily Amtrak Heartland Flyer service between Fort Worth, Texas, and Oklahoma City, Okla.

“Legislative leadership and Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Executive Director Marc Williams will keep this important service operating and connecting to local transit and the Amtrak National Network in Fort Worth,” said Amtrak Executive Vice President Jennifer Mitchell. “We will work with TxDOT, our partners in Oklahoma and the rest of the region to continue to provide the Heartland Flyer service.”

Since June 1999, the southbound Heartland Flyer has departed Oklahoma City in the morning, with Oklahoma stations in Norman, Purcell, Pauls Valley and Ardmore before crossing the Red River and making a stop in Gainesville, Texas. The northbound Heartland Flyer returns to those stations after leaving Fort Worth in the early evening. In the 12 months ending last September, 80,767 rode these trains, with both record ridership and ticket revenue. The service continued last year after threat of its termination due to a lack of a funding line item in the Texas state legislative budget cycle. The service was continued when the Regional Transportation Council flexed the required funds to close the gap.

Amtrak says it is making an estimated $17 million of federally funded investments at Texas and Oklahoma stations along the 206-mile route alongside the announcement. Accessibility work is nearly complete at three stations and two more stations expected to be out for bid next year, according to Amtrak.

With 50 employees, the Fort Worth crew base is the sole hub for Heartland Flyer maintenance, operations and commissary, comprising the bulk of the $23 million Amtrak payroll in Texas. Last year, Amtrak says it bought more than $95 million in Texas goods and services (plus $256,000 in Oklahoma) with $69 million in Texas communities served by the Heartland Flyer. 

This year, a $4.2 million fund transfer within TxDOT enables the popular service to continue while the legislature meets next year to consider the 2027-28 state budget.

“Securing the future of the Heartland Flyer has been a priority of mine, and I’m glad to see Texas, Oklahoma and Amtrak come together on this agreement. This route matters. It connects North Texas communities to jobs, education and each other, and it’s a service our constituents have made clear they value. It’s a win for North Texas families, our regional economy, and the future of passenger rail in our state, and I’ll keep working to see it succeed,” said Texas Senate Transportation Committee Chair Tan Parker (R-12).

Amtrak says that this state funding from the Texas Transportation Commission and action by the legislative budget board clears the way for the “Big Game Train,” a service extension of the Heartland Flyer between Fort Worth and Dallas for fans to attend a College Football game in Dallas each October between the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma.