UT Dallas DART Commute Guide: Waterview, CityLine, and What Rent Buys in Richardson

Living off campus at UT Dallas means planning around a commute, not a walk. Even the closest rated complex on Find My Place, Parkside Towns, is a 24-minute walk from campus, and most Richardson apartments sit 30 to 70 minutes away on foot. The good news for your UT Dallas DART commute: since October 25, 2025, the Silver Line stops at a UT Dallas station on Waterview Parkway, the free Comet Cruiser shuttle still runs to CityLine/Bush, and most UTD students can get a DART pass at no extra cost.

Key Takeaways

• Walking is off the table for most people. Of the Richardson buildings we checked, only a handful near Waterview Parkway and Renner Road come in under 40 minutes on foot.
• The Silver Line's UT Dallas station (3416 Waterview Parkway) opened in October 2025, one stop from the CityLine/Bush Red Line transfer.
• Free rides: the Comet Cruiser (DART Route 883) needs no pass at all, and the DART Student Transit Pass costs enrolled students nothing.
• Driving? Budget for a permit. UTD lists a full-year Green permit at $194 and Gold at $348.
• One-bedrooms in the buildings below list from about $1,073 (The Pearl on Frankford) to $1,362 (The James at Canyon Creek), and where a building has bigger floor plans, the price climbs with bedroom count, so they're whole-unit rents, not per-bed.

Why the Commute Decides UT Dallas Housing

At UTD, how you get to campus shapes the whole housing search. The campus sits in suburban Richardson along Campbell Road and Waterview Parkway, and most apartments are spread across Richardson, north Dallas and south Plano. Proximity alone won't narrow the list much.

The walk times on FMP's property pages say it plainly. Parkside Towns is 24 minutes on foot. Marquis at Waterview is 30.

Head out to the CityLine buildings and you're looking at about 70. That's why the first question isn't "how close?" It's "car, train, or shuttle?"

If you want the full list first, browse all UT Dallas off-campus housing on Find My Place, then come back here to sort it by commute.

How the DART Silver Line Changed the UT Dallas Commute

UTD now has its own rail stop. The UT Dallas Station on the DART Silver Line opened for service on October 25, 2025, just north of campus past the Northside development. The Silver Line runs 26 miles across seven cities, from Shiloh Road in Plano to DFW Airport Terminal B.

For apartment hunters, the stop that matters is the next one east: CityLine/Bush. That station also serves the DART Red Line, so a Silver Line ride connects you to the light rail heading south toward Galatyn Park, Spring Valley and downtown Dallas.

The catch: Silver Line trains aren't frequent

Don't treat it like a subway. DART's Silver Line operating plan calls for two trains an hour in each direction at weekday peaks and one an hour off-peak and on weekends. Miss your 8:10 and you might wait a while. (Check the live schedule before you commit to a lease around it.)

What it costs you: usually nothing

UTD says DART Access passes are available at no additional cost for most currently enrolled students, with unlimited local bus and rail rides. You apply with your Comet Card through Parking and Transportation.

The Comet Cruiser: UTD's Free Shuttle to CityLine/Bush

The Comet Cruiser is DART Route 883, and you don't need a pass or ID to ride. According to UTD Parking and Transportation, there are two routes.

• Route 883 East links the CityLine/Bush train station with the University Transit Center, every 15 minutes Monday through Thursday.
• 883 West loops from campus to stops at Meandering Way at Wester Way and at Frankford Road at Osage Plaza Parkway (plus the Coit Road Walmart on some days).
• Hours run 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. on weekdays and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.

So if you're comparing two similar buildings, the one within walking distance of a Cruiser stop wins. That's the whole trick.

Waterview and West Renner: The Shortest Walks to UTD

The area west of campus, around Waterview Parkway, West Renner Road and Canyon Creek, is where you'll find the shortest walks. These are the buildings with the lowest walk times on FMP, with the score each page shows today.

• Parkside Towns Apartments on Hibiscus Avenue: 24-minute walk, 5.0 FMP score. The closest rated option we have.
• Marquis at Waterview, 800 W. Renner Road: 30-minute walk, 4.2 score, one-bedrooms from $1,199. Reviewers praise the leasing staff but flag aging appliances.
• The James at Canyon Creek on Greenside Drive: 33 minutes, 5.0 score, from $1,362.
• Estates of Richardson on the George Bush frontage road: 33 minutes, 3.8 score, from $1,288.
• Royal Arms on Custer Parkway lists from $1,240 (36-minute walk, 3.0 score). Mixed maintenance reviews, so tour before you sign.
• Foundation at Cityline, 601 W. Renner Road: 40 minutes, 5.0 score, from $1,235. Despite the name, it's on the Renner side, not at the CityLine station.

Honest opinion: if you don't have a car, this pocket is where you should start. A 30-minute walk is long, but it's a bike ride of 10 minutes or so, and you're never stuck waiting on a train.

CityLine and Galatyn Park: Living on the Rail Line

Bigger apartment complexes cluster around CityLine and Galatyn Park, along US-75. They're 60 to 70 minutes on foot from UTD, but close to DART rail and roughly a 9- to 11-minute drive to campus.

• Axis 110 on West CityLine Drive: 4.2 score, one-bedrooms from $1,237.
• SYNC CityLine, next door, lists from $1,121 with a 3.0 score.
• Cue Galatyn Station on Plaza Boulevard: 4.4 score, from $1,339, near the Galatyn Park Red Line stop.

The appeal here is the transfer. From CityLine/Bush you can catch the Comet Cruiser 883 East straight to campus or hop the Silver Line one stop west. The tradeoff is the walk: without a car, every trip to campus depends on a bus or train schedule.

What Rent Buys Around UT Dallas in 2026

For $1,100 to $1,400 a month, you're usually getting a one-bedroom in a standard Richardson apartment complex. FMP's UTD page puts shared rooms near campus at roughly $900 to $1,200 per month. Every building we checked with more than one floor-plan size priced its bigger units higher, which tells you the listed rents are for the whole unit.

Want a lower number? Look just south in north Dallas. The Pearl on Frankford lists one-bedrooms from $1,073 and two-bedrooms from $1,264, with a 4.2 score and a 43-minute walk. Frankford Road also gets a Comet Cruiser 883 West stop, at Osage Plaza Parkway. Check the route map to see how far your door actually is.

Driving changes the math. UTD's parking office lists a Green permit at $194 for the year, Gold at $348 and Orange at $536. Add that to rent before you compare a cheap place 3 miles out against a pricier one you can walk from.

For more options ranked by resident reviews, see the best overall apartments near UT Dallas or the full Richardson student housing list. Commuting to another DFW campus? We ran the same math in our UTA commute guide.

Frequently Asked Questions About the UT Dallas Commute

Is there a DART train station at UT Dallas?

Yes. The UT Dallas Station on the Silver Line opened October 25, 2025, at 3416 Waterview Parkway, just north of campus. The next stop east is CityLine/Bush, where you can transfer to the Red Line.

Can you live near UT Dallas without a car?

It's doable, but pick your building carefully. Stick to the Waterview and West Renner area (24 to 40 minutes on foot, a short bike ride) or live near a Comet Cruiser stop, and use the free DART Student Transit Pass for everything else.

Is the Comet Cruiser free?

Completely. UTD says you don't need any pass or ID to ride Route 883. The East route runs every 15 minutes Monday through Thursday between CityLine/Bush and the University Transit Center.

How much is a one-bedroom near UT Dallas?

About $1,100 to $1,400 a month at most complexes we checked in September 2026. Marquis at Waterview lists from $1,199 and The James at Canyon Creek from $1,362. The Pearl on Frankford in north Dallas starts lower, at $1,073.

What's the closest off-campus apartment to UT Dallas?

Parkside Towns, at a 24-minute walk, is the closest rated property on Find My Place. Marquis at Waterview (30 minutes) and The James at Canyon Creek (33 minutes) come next.