DOT awards more than $112M to 46 transit projects; more than half for purchases of new hybrid, battery-electric or fuel-cell buses

The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has selected 46 transit projects to share more than $112 million in funding to promote innovative and clean-fuel transit projects from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Fifty-five percent of the total award will go to 24 projects acquiring hybrid-electric, full battery-electric, or fuel-cell electric buses or transit vehicles.

Projects were selected through the FTA’s competitive Fiscal Year 2011 Sustainability Initiative, which includes funding from two FTA programs: the Clean Fuels Grant Program and the TIGGER III (Transit Investment in Greenhouse Gas and Energy Reduction) Grant Program.

• 18 projects replacing older buses with hybrid-electric models will receive a total of $39.2 million (34.9%).
• 5 projects bringing in battery-electric buses will receive a total of $17.7 million (15.8%), with the largest single project being a $6.7-million award to Long Beach (CA) Transit to support replacing 10 older buses with battery-electric models.
• One project (SunLine Transit) received $4,917,876 (4.4%) to acquire two new fuel-cell buses.

The Federal Transit Administration reviewed 266 project applications for both grant programs representing more than $1 billion in funding requests from transit providers across the country.

DOT announces $104.1-million clean-fuel transit initiative

U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has announced that transit authorities can duke it out for a share of $101.4 million in federal funds by proposing innovative projects that promote the use of "clean fuels" for public transit. Says Secretary LaHood:

This money supports President Obama's plan to improve the environment and secure America's energy future. These investments will improve public transportation access for millions of Americans – all while reducing our dependence on oil, curbing air pollution, and easing pain at the gas pump.

Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff says that with soaring gas prices hitting Americans hard, public transit is becoming increasingly important. Hence the need to modernize much of the nation's outdated transit system.

Funds will be provided through the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) Sustainability Initiative, which includes $51.5 million from the FTA's Clean Fuels Grant Program and $49.9 million from the Administration's Transit Investment in Greenhouse Gas and Energy Reduction III Program. Grant recipients will be chosen through a competitive selection process based on their ability to maintain or reduce an area's National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ozone and carbon monoxide.



Source: Autoblog Green