$14B for city and state transit awarded in FTA formula grants | Dump Trucks Charlotte NC

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The Federal Transit Administration Thursday announced more than $14 billion in formula grants to support public transportation in states, cities, territories and tribal regions in fiscal year 2023. The funds can go toward converting bus fleets to zero-emission vehicles, improving access to transit for older adults and those with disabilities, and improving rail, bus and ferry transportation.

The New York-New Jersey-Connecticut area will benefit from nearly $2.8 billion in FTA grants this year, followed by Chicago, which received $776 million; the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California, region, nearly $630 million; and the Washington-Maryland-Virginia metro area, $534 million. Receiving more than $400 million each are the metro areas of Philadelphia, which includes parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland; Boston, including portions of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire; and San Francisco-Oakland, California.

The FTA apportions funds based on transit service data reported to the National Transit Database, Census data and data on low-income people, those with disabilities and older adults. The formula funds are part of the FTA's $21.4 billion in 2023 congressional appropriations, which consist of approximately $17 billion from annual appropriations, $4.25 billion from the 2021 infrastructure law and $214 million in federal emergency relief funds.

The FTA's strategic goals, which follow the U.S. Department of Transportation's strategic plan for 2021 through 2026, include:

• Improving transit safety.
• Increasing resiliency of transit systems.
• Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental impacts from transit construction and operations.
• Improving equity in access to opportunities and services.
• Connecting communities by expanding high-quality transit service. 

“This funding will open more doors to Americans than ever before,” said FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez in a press release. “Transit formula funding provides a lifeline for communities, and this record level of support will help create jobs, provide mobility to more people and address the climate crisis.”