FTA Makes $85M in Low-No Emission Bus Grants
July 26, 2019
Earlier today, the Federal Transit Administration announced 38 grants to transit agencies for purchase of low or no emission buses, totaling $85 million.
“These grants will help communities nationwide bring the next generation of bus technology to enhance their transportation system,” said Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.
“Since its establishment, FTA’s Low-No program has funded over $300 million in new buses, infrastructure, and training, helping create and maintain American jobs in a fast-growing industry,” said FTA Acting Administrator Jane Williams.
A full list of projects and project descriptions can be found on the FTA website here.
The low-no program is established in subsection (c) of 49 U.S.C. §5339 and lets federal grants pay for up to 80 percent of the cost of:
- acquiring low or no emission vehicles;
- leasing low or no emission vehicles;
- acquiring low or no emission vehicles with a leased power source;
- constructing facilities and related equipment for low or no emission vehicles;
- leasing facilities and related equipment for low or no emission vehicles;
- constructing new public transportation facilities to accommodate low or no emission vehicles; or
- rehabilitating or improving existing public transportation facilities to accommodate low or no emission vehicles;
The total amount of grants shown below is $84,951,386. The mean (mathematical average) grant size is $2.24 million and the median grant (the number closest to the middle of the list if they were ranked largest to smallest) is $2.29 million, indicating a high degree of uniformity in grant sizes. The FAST Act of 2015 provided $55 million in contract authority from the Highway Trust Fund in 2019 for the program and the FY 2019 DOT Appropriations Act provided an additional $30 million in appropriations from the general fund of the Treasury.
The grant sizes should be viewed in the fact that a new electric transit bus probably costs somewhere in the $800 thousand to $1 million range, depending on options, so none of these transit agencies is getting a massive new bus fleet out of any one year’s awards.
FY 2019 Low-No Emission Bus Grant Awards |
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| State | City/Area | Grant Award | State | City/Area | Grant Award | |
| AK | Juneau | $2,600,000 | MN | MSP area | $2,500,000 | |
| AK | Alabama A&M U. | $1,700,000 | MO | Springfield | $1,496,329 | |
| AZ | Tucson | $2,600,000 | MS | Gulfport area | $744,000 | |
| CA | Anaheim | $2,000,000 | NC | Raleigh | $1,650,000 | |
| CO | Denver | $2,600,000 | NE | Lincoln | $2,647,671 | |
| DC | Washington | $2,600,000 | NM | Albuquerque | $2,786,875 | |
| DE | Statewide | $2,600,000 | NV | Lake Tahoe | $2,125,000 | |
| FL | Orlando | $1,961,233 | NY | Niagara Falls | $2,500,000 | |
| GA | Atlanta | $2,600,000 | OH | Columbus | $2,600,000 | |
| IA | Ames | $1,660,180 | OK | Tulsa | $2,991,000 | |
| ID | Boise | $3,000,000 | OR | Portland | $2,088,579 | |
| IL | Peoria | $2,320,000 | PA | Pittsburgh | $1,912,000 | |
| IN | Bloomington | $284,759 | SC | Rock Hill | $2,245,935 | |
| KS | Topeka | $1,737,825 | TN | Chattanooga | $2,200,000 | |
| KY | Lexington | $2,200,000 | TX | Austin | $2,600,000 | |
| LA | Baton Rouge | $2,500,000 | UT | St. George | $3,000,000 | |
| MA | Statewide | $2,200,000 | VT | Statewide | $3,000,000 | |
| MD | P.G. County | $2,200,000 | WA | Seattle | $2,200,000 | |
| MI | Detroit area | $2,600,000 | WI | Milwaukee | $1,700,000 | |
