“The pandemic has made clear our operating funding model of relying so heavily on riders is outdated and hampers our efforts to provide equitable service, especially for low-income riders and marginalized communities,” BART General Manager Bob Powers said. “Increased federal funding allows BART to continue to invest in service improvements and safety enhancement as we welcome riders back to transit.”

BART, WMATA Awarded $390MM in ARP Additional Assistance Grants

San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) and Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) will receive $270 million and $120 million, respectively, from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) under the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Additional Assistance Grant Program; the funding is awarded to transit systems demonstrating additional pandemic-associated needs.

At BART’s Warm Springs/South Freemont Station, riders can now use a new 250-foot-long steel truss bridge to reach the Freemont Innovation District.

Transit Briefs: BART, FTA

California’s Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) has opened a $41 million pedestrian bridge at the Warm Springs/South Fremont Station. Also, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is seeking nominations for the Transit Advisory Committee for Safety (TRACS).

New Jersey Transit is ordering 25 Multilevel III commuter cars from Alstom.

NJT Ordering 25 Multilevels, Names New Rail Ops Leader

New Jersey Transit will exercise an option with Alstom for 25 additional Multilevel III commuter railcars, following Board approval on Feb. 9. Also, James Sincaglia has assumed the role of Senior Vice President and General Manager of Rail Operations at the agency, after serving in an acting capacity.

CTA employs some 10,600 workers, who provided nearly 200 million trips in 2020.

For CTA, $912.1MM ARP Grant

Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) has been awarded a $912.1 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for COVID-19 response under the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021.

FTA to Transit: $4.7B in FY22 Formula Funding Available (Updated)

More than $4.7 billion in Fiscal Year 2022 transit formula funding is now available to transit agencies, states and Tribal governments, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) reported on Feb. 3.

Metra employs approximately 2,600 workers who provided nearly 17 million trips throughout the Chicago metro area in 2020.

For Metra, $513.6MM ARP Grant

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has awarded Metra (Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Railroad Corporation) a $513.6 million grant for COVID-19 response under the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021.

An ACS64-led Amtrak Northeast Regional train prepares to depart Penn Station New York, bound for Washington, D.C. William C. Vantuono photo

FTA Increases Hudson Tunnel Project Rating to ‘Medium-High’

The Federal Transportation Administration (FTA) on Jan. 20 announced new ratings for six projects seeking funding from the Capital Investment Grants (CIG) program—one was for the Hudson Tunnel Project and the others for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) projects.

San Diego Association of Governments has been awarded $405,000 for TOD planning at four stations along the Trolley’s Blue Line.

FTA Awards $11MM in TOD Grants

Twenty projects—10 rail-specific—will share $11.03 million in Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grants through the Pilot Program for Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Planning.

“This critical help from Congress is the reason we were able to keep most of our service running for essential trips during the pandemic and all of our workers employed,” LACMTA CEO Stephanie N. Wiggins said.

CTDOT, LACMTA, NJT, NYMTA: $9.4B in Grants for COVID-19 Response

The Federal Transit Administration is awarding American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021 grants for COVID-19 response to the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT, $332.5 million); Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA, $1.24 billion); New Jersey Transit (NJT, $1.6 billion); and New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (NYMTA, $6.2 billion).

First Look: Valley Metro’s Newest Siemens LRVs

On Jan. 10, three S700 light rail vehicles from Siemens Mobility entered revenue service on Phoenix Valley Metro’s 28-mile line between northwest Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa, Ariz.

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