November 30, 2o18

This week, the Federal Transit Administration announced that they are formally allocating fiscal 2018 appropriations for the Capital Investment Grant (CIG) program for four new mass transit projects: the third section of the mammoth Los Angeles Westside Purple Line extension, plus smaller projects in Tempe, Arizona (a new streetcar system), Minneapolis, Minnesota (a new bus rapid transit system), and capacity upgrades in the Dallas, Texas DART rail system.

“These significant investments in the public transit systems in five communities across the country will improve mobility for riders who depend upon public transit every day,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.

Technically, those four projects can’t exactly spend the money yet. All that has happened is that FTA has set aside money for them out of the FY 2018 appropriations, by updating the formal allocation table. Money can’t actually change hands until FTA and the local transit agency sign a full funding grant agreement (FFGA) for total construction cost of the system or segment. And in the case of the Los Angeles project, the FY18 allocation only scratches the surface – FTA is allocating $100 million in FY18 funding, but the eventual FFGA will call for a total of $1.3 billion in CIG funding over a decade.

But this week’s announcement is a good sign that FTA expects to sign FFGAs for those four projects in the coming months – the FTA press release said that “the present administration is committing to execute an additional four agreements for $1.5 billion in CIG funding if those projects continue to meet the CIG program requirements.”

(The FTA announcement also mentioned the allocation of FY18 funding to the San Diego Mid-Coast Corridor project, but that FFGA was signed two years ago, so the formal allocation of funding already promised is much less newsworthy than the allocation of money for new projects.)

(See this article in this week’s issue for much more perspective on the long-range cost of these FFGAs.)

The Trump Administration has signed eleven FFGAs so far, and they have sent Congress the statutorily required 30-day notification for the signature of two more FFGAs before Christmas (Santa Ana, CA and Seattle, WA). All told, the agreements signed to date promise $3.3 billion in eventual federal CIG appropriations for those transit projects. If the four agreements that got funding allocations this week are eventually signed, they will promise another $1.5 billion in eventual federal appropriations.

The list of grant agreements approved by the Trump Administration to date, and those promised or hinted at in the near future, are below. (NS = new start, CC = core capacity, SS = small start.)

The four new projects that got funding allocations this week are described below.

Tempe, AZ: Tempe Streetcar

The Tempe Streetcar is a three-mile streetcar with 14 stations and six vehicles that will connect downtown Tempe and Arizona State University. It also will connect with existing light rail serving Phoenix, Mesa and the airport. The total project cost is $201.9 million with $75 million in funding requested through the CIG Program. Upon final FTA approval of a construction grant agreement, the project will receive $25 million in FY 2018 CIG funds to complete the CIG funding request.

Los Angeles, CA: Los Angeles Westside Purple Line Section 3 Project

The Los Angeles Westside Purple Line Section 3 project is a 2.6-mile heavy rail extension from Century City to Westwood and the Veterans Affairs hospital that includes two stations and 16 vehicles. The total project cost is $3.7 billion with $1.3 billion in funding requested through the CIG Program. Upon final FTA approval of a construction grant agreement, the project will receive $100 million in FY 2018 CIG funds.

Minneapolis, MN: Minneapolis Orange Line BRT Project

The Minneapolis Orange Line BRT project is a 17-mile BRT along Interstate 35 linking job centers including downtown, Best Buy Headquarters, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Target Corporation, and Southtown Shopping Center. The total project cost is $150.7 million with $74.08 million requested through the CIG Program. Upon final FTA approval of a construction grant agreement, the project will receive $74.08 million in FY 2018 CIG funds to complete the CIG funding request.

Dallas, TX: Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Red and Blue Line Platform Extensions Project

The DART Red and Blue Line Platform Extensions project will extend and modify platforms along the existing Red and Blue Lines to accommodate three-car trains with level boarding. The total project cost is $128.7 million with $60.76 million requested through the CIG Program. Upon final FTA approval of a construction grant agreement, the project will receive $2 million in FY 2018 CIG funds to complete the CIG funding request.