U.S. Transportation Department Announces $1.1 Billion to Support Cleaner Public Transit

The U.S. Department of Transportation on March 7 announced the availability of $1.47 billion in competitive grant funded by the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to help transform bus fleets and facilities across America, which will aid high paying careers and help lower carbon emissions. This includes $1.1 billion funding to state and local governmental authorities to buy or lease zero-emission and low-emission transit buses.

The declaration is the initial Federal Transit Administration (FTA) competitive grant prospect under the 2021 law, which provides for significant investment in the U. S’s infrastructure and competitiveness. The law authorizes up to $108 billion for public transportation – the largest federal investment in public transportation in the U.S. to date.

The FTA’s Low or No Emission (Low-No) Grant Program has $5.5 billion made available over five years, more than 10 times greater than the previous five years of funding. The additional funding available is to assist transit agencies acquire or lease U.S. built low or no emission vehicles that employ advanced technologies, involving related equipment or resources for transit revenue operations. For Fiscal Year 2022, almost $1.1 billion will be accessible for contributions under this program.

The FTA’s grants for the Buses and Bus Facilities Program has $2 billion made available over five years. The funding is to aid transit organizations procure and restore buses, vans, and related equipment, and build bus facilities. For Fiscal Year 2022, roughly $372 million for grants will be obtainable under this program.

As part of the FTA’s pledge to help transit workers plan for technological developments, five percent of each grant under the Low-No program is required to be used for workforce enhancement and training. The FTA is fostering workforce improvement projects that are established in alliance with labour and the use of enrolled apprenticeships. Zero-emission projects, specifically, are able to use five percent of their support for workforce development.

Moreover, the FTA is encouraging applicants to the funding to provide information on how their proposed project will support the Justice40 initiative by detecting  communities that the projects will aid through jobs, enhanced safety, resiliency, access to transport, and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

Instructions for applying for the funding can be found on FTA’s website and complete proposals must be submitted by May 21,2022.