On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced it would be providing early $14 million in grants to 25 projects in 24 states as part of the Accelerating Innovative Mobility (AIM) initiative to support mobility and innovation in the transit industry.
“As we face this public health emergency, investments in innovation are critical for transit agencies to better meet rider expectations and adapt to changes in our transportation system,” said K. Jane Williams, deputy administrator of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). “We are pleased to collaborate with these grant recipients to develop new service methods to improve safety, increase access, develop more efficient operations, and enhance the transit experience for all.”
Grant recipients will use new technologies and services, including microtransit, vehicle automation, integrating ride-hailing services with transit and contactless fare payments. Of the projects, 20 are located in or benefit rural areas, the department said.
Projects receiving funding include The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County in the Houston metro area, which will receive $1.5 million to develop an automated electric shuttle bus to serve Texas Southern University, the University of Houston, and Houston’s Third Ward community; the Oregon Department of Transportation, which will receive $480,000 to build a web-based repository of data that will provide near real-time information to planners at the local, state and federal level; and the City of Wilson in rural central North Carolina, which will receive $250,000 to replace its fixed-route transit service with on-demand, rural microtransit for more targeted service.
The FTA said it received 75 eligible proposals totaling nearly $62.3 million in funding requests from 33 states and territories.