Plano to Dallas commute: distance, DART trains, toll roads and airports

Plano to Dallas commute at a glance

Where to live in Plano for your commute, by where you'll work

Start with the job, then the house. The city's rail stations are all on the east side and its office campuses cluster around Legacy in the northwest, so the commute decides which half of the city you tour. Find your work location in the left column:

If you'll ride the train downtown, make the east side your first tour: our east Plano guide covers the homes around the stations, where Zillow's typical 75074 value was $362,198 in September 2026. If the job is at Legacy, accept the higher price and keep the drive short; compare 75024 and 75093 on our Plano ZIP code values page. If two of you commute in opposite directions, the central ZIPs along US-75, 75023 and 75075, sit between the stations and the campuses.

The mortgage cost of a Plano commute: east side vs west side

Here's what the train side of town is worth on paper. On Zillow's typical values, a 75074 home at $362,198 and a 75093 home at $738,271 differ by $376,073. With 20% down at Freddie Mac's 30-year average of 7.4% (week of October 15, 2026), principal and interest run about $2,006 a month on the first and $4,089 on the second: a gap of about $2,083 a month, before taxes and insurance. That's the budget a west-side buyer is spending on a shorter drive to Legacy, and the budget an east-side buyer keeps by taking the train downtown. These are typical-value figures, not quotes, and the houses differ in more than location.

Linda can time the drive from a shortlisted house to your office at your real commute hour on a weekday tour, so you see it before you commit.

Plano to Dallas commute: how far and which way in

The Texas State Historical Association places Plano on US-75 about 15 miles north of Dallas. Measured between the Census Bureau's center points for each city, the straight-line distance is 17.8 miles; road miles run longer, and they change with where in Dallas you're going. We don't print drive times, because a Plano to Dallas drive at 7:30 a.m. and the same drive at 10 a.m. aren't the same trip. Use a live map the week before you sign a lease or contract, at the hour you'd leave.

You have three ways in: DART's Red and Orange lines from the east-side stations, the Silver Line across the north of the metro, and the highways (US-75 free, the Dallas North Tollway and the Bush Turnpike tolled). The train times below come from DART's weekday schedules effective October 19, 2026.

Plano to Dallas commute on the DART Red and Orange lines

DART lists the Red Line from Parker Road Station to Westmoreland Station and the Orange Line from Parker Road Station to DFW Airport Station, both through downtown Dallas. In Plano they stop at Parker Road, Downtown Plano and 12th Street. Weekday morning Red Line trains leave Parker Road every 20 minutes in the peak (7:07, 7:27, 7:47 a.m. on the current schedule), and Orange Line trains add more departures, so the downtown commute has a train roughly every 10 minutes at rush hour between the two lines.

Parker Road Station, Plano's park-and-ride

Parker Road is the northern end of both lines and the station built for drivers: DART lists 2,020 free parking spaces, with overnight or long-term parking at your own discretion, and a kiss-and-ride drop-off.

Downtown Plano Station, a walk-up stop

DART lists no parking at Downtown Plano Station. It works for people who live within walking or biking distance in and around downtown Plano, and it's two minutes down the line from Parker Road. Our downtown Plano neighborhood guide covers the homes near it.

12th Street Station, the Silver Line transfer

12th Street is where the Silver Line meets the Red and Orange lines in Plano, with 233 parking spaces. CityLine/Bush Station in Richardson, six minutes south, is the other transfer point and has 1,193 free spaces.

GoLink to the Plano stations

If you live too far to walk and don't want to park, DART lists GoLink, its on-demand ride service, at Parker Road, Downtown Plano and 12th Street stations, inside an East Plano GoLink zone. Book it in the GoPass app; the Local fare covers it.

Early, late and weekend DART commute times

The first weekday Red Line train toward downtown leaves Parker Road at 4:17 a.m. on the current schedule. The Silver Line runs 4 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily but drops to one train an hour off-peak and on weekends, so a weekend airport trip from Plano needs a check of the timetable first.

DART fares for a Plano commute

DART's Local fare covers its rail, buses, GoLink and the Dallas Streetcar; Regional adds Trinity Railway Express, DCTA and Trinity Metro. Fares are paid through the GoPass app, a GoPass Tap card or a ticket, and you need proof of payment on board. Riders who qualify can get reduced fares. Check current prices and passes in the GoPass app, since an employer pass may cover yours.

The Silver Line: Plano's cross-town commute and airport train

DART opened the Silver Line on Saturday, October 25, 2025: more than 26 miles and 10 stations linking Plano, Richardson, Dallas, Addison, Carrollton, Coppell, Grapevine and DFW Airport. It runs from 4 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily, every 30 minutes in the weekday peak and every 60 minutes off-peak and on weekends.

Silver Line stations in Plano

Plano has two: Shiloh Road Station at 1001 Shiloh Road, the eastern end of the line, and 12th Street Station at 1200 K Avenue near downtown Plano. Both are in the 75074 ZIP on the city's east side.

Silver Line commute to Addison, UT Dallas and Cypress Waters

The Silver Line runs east to west across the northern suburbs, so it's the train for jobs near UT Dallas, Knoll Trail, Addison, Downtown Carrollton and Cypress Waters. From 12th Street, Addison is 19 minutes on the current schedule.

Silver Line to DFW Airport

Terminal B is 51 minutes from 12th Street and 55 from Shiloh Road. Before the Silver Line, the rail trip from Plano meant the Orange Line through downtown Dallas, which DART schedules at 97 minutes from Parker Road to the DFW Airport Station at Terminal A. The catch is frequency: at 30 or 60 minutes between trains, you plan your flight around the timetable.

Driving the Plano to Dallas commute: US-75 and the toll roads

If you drive, the road depends on which side of Plano you live on and where you're headed, and US-75 is the free one.

US-75 (Central Expressway)

US-75 runs north to south through Plano and is the free route into Dallas, which is how the TSHA locates the city. The east-side ZIPs, the rail stations and downtown Plano all sit near it.

Dallas North Tollway

The Dallas North Tollway runs north to south through west Plano and Legacy and is tolled by the North Texas Tollway Authority. A TollTag account and the NTTA's pay-by-mail option cost different amounts, so compare them on NTTA's site before you start commuting.

President George Bush Turnpike and SH-121

The Bush Turnpike runs east to west along Plano's south side, past the CityLine/Bush station in Richardson, and SH-121 runs along the north and west. They're the cross-town routes to Frisco, Carrollton, Irving and DFW Airport rather than downtown Dallas.

Toll roads change the monthly budget: count tolls with gas and parking when you compare a west Plano house with an east-side one near the train. Our Plano cost of living guide has the other monthly costs.

Getting from DFW Airport and Love Field to Plano

DFW Airport to Plano by train

From DFW Airport's Terminal B, take the Silver Line east to 12th Street (51 minutes) or Shiloh Road (55). For west Plano and Legacy, a car or ride-share is usually the direct option, since the Silver Line stations are on the east side. The Orange Line from DFW Airport Station at Terminal A reaches Downtown Plano and Parker Road through downtown Dallas.

Love Field to Plano by train

Love Field has no rail station at the terminal. The Orange Line stops at Inwood/Love Field Station, 55 minutes from Parker Road on the weekday schedule, and DART's trip planner shows the bus connection from there to the terminal.

Plano to Fort Worth commute

Fort Worth is 39.5 miles from Plano in a straight line between the two cities' Census center points, more than twice the distance to Dallas. DART lists Trinity Metro's TEXRail as a connection on the Silver Line at DFW Airport, so the train trip is Silver Line west, then TEXRail. By road, the route runs past DFW Airport. Whichever mode you use, a Fort Worth job is more than twice the distance of a Dallas one, so time the trip before you settle on Plano.

Commute from Plano to Legacy, Frisco and the northern job centers

If your job is in Plano or north of it, Dallas doesn't come into it. Legacy's office campuses are in northwest Plano, and Frisco is 8.4 miles from Plano's center point. For those jobs the tollway and SH-121 matter more than DART. Our guide to Plano's major employers maps the campuses.