The Trump Administration’s proposed fiscal year 2019 budget would put 800,000 jobs at risk, including 502,000 construction and related positions, according to the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).
In addition, the cuts to public transit could result in $90 billion less in economic output, according to The Economic Implications of Proposed Public Transit Capital Funding Cuts report prepared by the Economic Development Research Group for APTA.
The budget proposal includes cuts to Amtrak, the local DC metro’s budget, the Transportation Investment Generating Economic program, and Capital Investment Grants (CIG).
Cutting CIG alone will put 53 new public transit projects, totaling $51.7 billion, at risk. The projects were approved in the 2015 Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act and have committed local and state funds.
“The proposed budget cuts to public transit will affect accessibility for millions of Americans across the nation that rely on our bus and rail systems to get to and from jobs, healthcare, and education,” APTA Chairman Nathaniel P. Ford Sr. said. “Without this funding, projects that rely on Capital Investment Grants will not be implemented and communities will suffer.”
Public transit CEOs throughout the nation are concerned about the proposed cuts and the economic and community impact the cuts would create.