U.S. Department of Transportation Announces $130 Million in Grants for Nationwide Projects to Expand Advanced, Efficient Bus Technologies

Category: Non-Local News Releases Non-Local News Releases
Published: 02 June 2020 02 June 2020

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation's (USDOT) Federal Transit Administration (FTA) today announced approximately $130 million in grant selections through the Low- or No-Emission (Low-No) Grant program, which funds the deployment of transit buses and infrastructure for the purchase or lease of zero-emission and low-emission transit buses and supporting facilities. In this competition, FTA focused on the introduction of new technology not commonly found within U.S. transit systems such as advancements to propulsion systems. Forty-one projects in 40 states and the District of Columbiawill each receive funding through the program.

"These grants will help communities nationwide deploy the next generation of bus technology to enhance their transportation system," said Secretary Elaine L. Chao.

Eligible projects include the purchase or lease of buses powered by modern, efficient technologies. These include hydrogen fuel cells, battery electric engines, and related infrastructure investments such as charging stations.

"Since its establishment, FTA's Low-No Emission grant program has funded over $409 million in new buses, infrastructure, and training, strengthening America's economy in a fast-growing industry," said FTA Acting Administrator K. Jane Williams.

Some examples of selected 2020 Low-No grant projects include:

  • The City of Tucson, Arizona (SunTran) will receive $3.8 million to purchase all-electric buses and charging equipment. The new electric buses will be in the Sun Tran fleet supporting access to jobs, education, and health services within the Pima County, City of Tucson, City of South Tucson, Pascua Yaqui and Tohono O'odham Nations Opportunity Zones.
  • The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) will receive $4.3 million for infrastructure upgrades to support its current battery electric bus fleet at its Midvale Bus Maintenance Facility in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
  • The City of Racine, Wisconsin (Racine Transit), will receive $3.2 million to purchase battery electric buses and charging stations to improve the efficiency of moving the city's workforce to jobs and school. Racine Transit carries over one million riders per year, utilizing 35 buses on ten routes and 155 miles of mixed traffic right-of-way.

The Low-No competitive grant program provides funding to state and local governmental authorities for the purchase or lease of zero-emission and low-emission transit buses as well as acquisition, construction, and leasing of required supporting facilities.

Content on the Beat

WARNING: All articles and photos with a byline or photo credit are copyrighted to the author or photographer. You may not use any information found within the articles without asking permission AND giving attribution to the source. Photos can be requested and may incur a nominal fee for use personally or commercially.

Disclaimer: If you find errors in articles not written by the Beat team but sent to us from other content providers, please contact the writer, not the Beat. For example, obituaries are always provided by the funeral home or a family member. We can fix errors, but please give details on where the error is so we can find it. News releases from government and non-profit entities are posted generally without change, except for legal notices, which incur a small charge.

NOTE: If an article does not have a byline, it was written by someone not affiliated with the Beat and then sent to the Beat for posting.

Images: We have received complaints about large images blocking parts of other articles. If you encounter this problem, click on the title of the article you want to read and it will take you to that article's page, which shows only that article without any intruders. 

New Columnists: The Beat continues to bring you new columnists. And check out the old faithfuls who continue to provide content.

Newsletter: If you opt in to the Join GCB Three Times Weekly Updates option above this to the right, you will be subscribed to email notifications with links to recently posted articles.

Submitting to the Beat

Those new to providing news releases to the Beat are asked to please check out submission guidelines at https://www.grantcountybeat.com/about/submissions. They are for your information to make life easier on the readers, as well as for the editor.

Advertising: Don't forget to tell advertisers that you saw their ads on the Beat.

Classifieds: We have changed Classifieds to a simpler option. Check periodically to see if any new ones have popped up. Send your information to editor@grantcountybeat.com and we will post it as soon as we can. Instructions and prices are on the page.

Editor's Notes

It has come to this editor's attention that people are sending information to the Grant County Beat Facebook page. Please be aware that the editor does not regularly monitor the page. If you have items you want to send to the editor, please send them to editor@grantcountybeat.com. Thanks!

Here for YOU: Consider the Beat your DAILY newspaper for up-to-date information about Grant County. It's at your fingertips! One Click to Local News. Thanks for your support for and your readership of Grant County's online news source—www.grantcountybeat.com

Feel free to notify editor@grantcountybeat.com if you notice any technical problems on the site. Your convenience is my desire for the Beat.  The Beat totally appreciates its readers and subscribers!  

Compliance: Because you are an esteemed member of The Grant County Beat readership, be assured that we at the Beat continue to do everything we can to be in full compliance with GDPR and pertinent US law, so that the information you have chosen to give to us cannot be compromised.