DART defends CEO hire as Dallas leaders question ridership and Jacksonville record

Dallas Area Rapid Transit officials are standing by their decision to hire Nat Ford as the agency’s next CEO, even as Texas councilmembers seek answers about his record in Jacksonville and DART’s ridership figures.RELATED: ‘JTA is a nightmare’: City councilman calls for former JTA CEO to testify over $40M financial crisisAt a Dallas City Council meeting Monday, councilmembers asked DART for an update on reports about Ford’s tenure leading the Jacksonville Transportation Authority. JTA faced a $39 million budget shortfall during that period, which led to the termination of 200 employees.Ford’s DART contract, finalized in July, provides an annual salary of $515,000 and includes $80,000 for relocation from Jacksonville.Randall Bryant, a DART board director, said the agency’s general counsel is communicating with legal teams in Jacksonville. He said DART conducted what he called a thorough and transparent hiring process, and that some of the issues now being reported were known and investi