20 Maps Of Arlington They Never Showed You In School

1. Arlington, Texas and Arlington, Vir. are not the same place—duh…

Though the Texas town was named after the Virginia county, so you can be forgiven for mixing them up.

2. …our Arlington is sandwiched between Dallas and Fort Worth…

It’s a cozy place to be. On a map, that is.

3. …but most maps just label it “Dallas/Fort Worth.” Not that we feel inferior about it or anything…

Probably because Arlington is the third largest city in the metro area—and we are totally cool with that.

4. …because Arlington is actually home to the Dallas Cowboys…

Really, where would Dallas be without us?

5. …and we have our own Six Flags.

And not just any Six Flags, Arlington’s was the very first. Beat that, Dallas!

6. …but for art and theater, you’ll want to visit Arlington’s neighbors…

The blue on the left? Fort Worth. The blue on the right? Dallas. The gray netherworld in between them? Arlington.

7. …we do have plenty of shopping though…

Everyone loves shopping!

8. …and (some) night life…

OK, it’s no Dallas, but it’s way better than Irving.

9. …unfortunately, the traffic sucks…

About 30 percent of Arlington residents drive 20 minutes to work every morning—and most of them more. (Darker colors denotes more 20 minute commuters.)

10. …and it’s not very walkable (or bikeable)…

The red parts of the map are less pedestrian-friendly, while the green parts of the map are more pedestrian-friendly. We’re pretty sure your eyes can do the math.

11. …and its public transportation is a joke…

Until 2013, Arlington was the largest city in the nation without any kind of public transportation. But things have changed, because today Arlington has a bus route. Yes, a bus route, singular.

12. …so hopefully you like driving.

Because over 90 percent of Arlington residents drive themselves to and from work every morning. That solid mass of dark blue? Those are drivers.

13. Like most of Texas, Arlington is hot and (mostly) dry…

It’s not as dry as east Texas, but it couldn’t really be called wet, either. Summers in Arlington are hot and humid while winters are mild.

14. …it’s currently in the middle of a major drought…

All of Texas has been hit by drought, but the metro area around Arlington has been hit especially hard—the yellow dots on this map represent areas with voluntary water restrictions while the orange dots represent areas with mandatory water restrictions.

15. …but Arlington is still making it rain—money that is…

Strong employment growth has kept the Arlington area in the green.

16. …so incomes are good…

Purple represents less money and yellow represents more money—most of Arlington is a muddy yellow-purple. This may seem middle of the road, but the cash goes a long way with the city’s reasonable cost of living.

17. …also, Arlington is surprisingly affordable…

On this map, green means lower home costs while red means higher home costs. Not much red is better for buyers’ pocketbooks.

18. …and the crime rate is pretty low…

Which is great if you’re coming out to see the Cowboys or the Rangers play.

19. …but it’s not very diverse.

The city is 65 percent White, 27 percent Hispanic or Latino, 18 percent Black or African American, and less than that for other races. This doesn’t do much for the town’s international cuisine.

20. …but what we lack in diversity we make up for in social networking skills.

That blazing white dot in the middle of this map, representing Twitter and Flickr use? Arlington is dead center, so the social network savvy will never be out of place.