BART, RTD: $635MM in ARP Grants for COVID-19 Response

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has awarded a $330.8 million American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021 grant to the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) and a $304.2 million ARP grant to the Denver Regional Transportation District (RTD).

The BART and RTD grants are part of more than $30 billion for public transportation in the ARP Act, which was signed into law by President Biden on March 11. The funding, intended to help transit agencies maintain service and jobs as communities continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, comes from the $26.6 billion allocated by statutory formulas to urban and rural areas, tribal governments, and for the enhanced mobility of seniors and individuals with disabilities. The Act also included $2.2 billion for additional transit pandemic-associated need, which will be awarded later this year, according to FTA. No local share is required for this funding.

“As our nation’s transit systems recover from COVID-19, the American Rescue Plan funds ensure that they continue to provide service to the many Americans who depend on transit to get to essential jobs, healthcare and vaccine appointments,” said FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez. “Transit has played a crucial role throughout the pandemic, bringing essential workers to jobs and helping the American people get to vaccine appointments and increasingly travel where they need to go as our nation opens back up.”