Dallas Area Rapid Transit President and CEO Nadine Lee announced Tuesday night she will not seek a renewal of her contract, stepping down from one of the most turbulent leadership tenures in the agency's history — and leaving DART to navigate a leadership transition at a particularly volatile moment.
Lee told the DART board that she would not be seeking an extension to her contract, saying "I will be leaving at a time to be determined." She broke the news to the agency's board Tuesday evening, then spoke with D Magazine in an interview where she explained her reasoning.
Lee said the foundational work of aligning the agency with new goals is complete, and she believes it's an appropriate time to move on. "As a CEO, it's important for me to determine if I am the right leader for this time," she said. "I think, in my mind, it's important to recognize when somebody else should take the helm, and that's kind of where I am."
DART's president and CEO announced on Tuesday night that she will resign at the end of her contract. The change comes at a pivotal moment for the transit agency.
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Lee was hired in 2021 to lead DART, a regional transit system that serves 13 member cities across a 700-square-mile service area with bus, light rail, commuter rail, and paratransit services, operated by approximately 3,700 employees.
Her tenure was marked by significant institutional challenges. Lee and her executive team narrowly avoided state legislation she said would have "killed" the system. After that session ended, she led the agency through a revolt by nearly half of its member cities seeking to claw back a portion of the sales tax revenue that accounts for the majority of DART's funding.
Six member cities — including Plano, Irving, Farmers Branch, Highland Park, University Park, and Addison — called withdrawal elections from the agency, with votes still pending. Dallas City Council members were also weighing a resolution to cede some of the city's majority influence on the DART board as negotiations with discontented suburbs continued.
Lee acknowledged that recent service reductions contributed to declining ridership, but defended the decisions as necessary given the circumstances. "When you cut service, ridership goes down," she said.
As for what comes next personally, Lee said she plans to take time off with no firm next step in mind — a deliberate choice after years of high-pressure leadership. "I have no plan actually right now," she said, "which I know sounds a little crazy."
No interim successor or search timeline has been announced. DART's board is expected to address the leadership transition in the coming weeks.
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Lee told the DART board that she would not be seeking an extension to her contract
