Congress recently authorized the Passenger Ferry Grant Program to provide approximately $30 million in competitive grant funding for fiscal year 2017.
The program was authorized by the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act and the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST) Act.
The grants will be awarded by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA). To be eligible for the funds, public entities must be engaged in providing public transportation passenger ferry service.
Funds can be used for existing or new services and to repair and modernize terminals, boats and other infrastructure.
“Waterways define and shape the economies of many of our communities, and in these places, passenger ferry service is essential,” FTA Executive Director Matthew Welbes said. “Ferry services provide a crucial lifeline, and we must ensure that they are safe and dependable for the people who rely on them.”
In May 2016, nearly $60 million was awarded in fiscal years 2015 and 2016 appropriations for the grant. Sixteen grants were awarded for ferry services in 10 states.
The largest grants awarded were $6 million each to the Delaware River and Bay Authority, New Jersey Transit and the New York City Department of Transportation.
The program has been authorized through fiscal year 2020.