The American Public Transportation Association (APTA), a nonprofit organization representing all modes of public transportation, recently sent a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg urging the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to improve public transit, passenger rail, and multimodal infrastructure.
This would be achieved through the agency’s selection of Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant recipients.
The USDOT announced in August that more than $2.2 billion in RAISE capital grant awards were given to 166 projects in every state, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands.
According to APTA estimates, the agency provided $418 million to 31 public transportation-related capital projects, equal to 18.6 percent of available funding. The historical average is approximately 33 percent.
“The RAISE Grant program is an extremely valuable resource for communities to carry out critical public transportation programs, and we strongly urge the Department to direct a significantly greater percentage of RAISE grant funds to these vital, community-enhancing projects,” Paul P. Skoutelas, APTA president and CEO said in the letter.
APTA represents 1,500 public- and private-sector organizations. Members are engaged in the areas of bus, paratransit, light rail, commuter rail, subways, waterborne services, and intercity and high-speed passenger rail.