TxDOT to receive $22.8 million in federal funds to improve rural transit

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) announced Tuesday during a Zoom meeting call that it will receive $22.8 million in federal funding to improve rural transit infrastructure by replacing and modernizing buses and adding four transit maintenance facilities in crucial sections of the state to facilitate better bus transport services.

Eric Kinkaid, Federal Transit Administration (FTA) communications director, stated that the FTA was awarding grants to 70 projects in 39 states to modernize the United States’ most used form of mass transit. Kinkaid said that the grants' focus was to launch and maintain environmentally friendly, safe and reliable transport within rural areas that need it most. An effort to move toward electrification of bus services is a significant aspect of the program to reduce damaging emissions.

“Importantly, these grant rewards will take on the greatest challenge of our time, the climate crisis, and will help these transit agencies transition their fleets to electric and other zero-emission technologies,” Kinkaid said. “These are big-ticket items, and our administration is ready to our part to offset these costs."

The bipartisan infrastructure law boosts bus transit funding by $10 billion over the next five years, in efforts to modernize the transit in both rural and urban communities across the country. In Texas, these projects will improve service and reliability for residents in rural Texas communities, according to the FTA.

Eric Gleason, Director of Public Transportation for TxDOT, spoke of the benefit to Texas, which has the most extensive rural bus transit system in the United States, with more than 1,700 fleet vehicles servicing the areas.

“Maintaining and improving rural connections is a key part for our transportation commission,” Gleason said. “We are really excited to get these funds that are absolutely critical to our continued efforts here at TxDOT in maintaining and improving service to rural areas.”

Gleason said that this transport is especially crucial in rural areas to connect people to jobs, healthcare, veteran services, and educational opportunities, to improve the quality of life for those in the most remote areas.

He said the vital transit maintenance facilities are located in all four geographic areas of the state: Alice, San Angelo, Sherman and Lufkin were announced as the cities where the maintenance facilities will be located.

No specific funding was announced for any areas, but only nine districts will not receive additional funding. Those areas were deemed already at a level where they do not need additional funding. Serving 35 counties in the Panhandle region is Panhandle Transit, which will receive additional funding to modernize and build their existing fleet.

Gleason said that the areas that will receive new electric buses would depend on the infrastructure and prioritized regions where air quality is at its worst levels. He said that at least 13 rural transit districts had expressed interest in being part of the pilot program of electric vehicles, and that about three or four districts would be chosen.

Kinkaid released a statement from the U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg: "These grants will help people in communities large and small get to work, get to school and access the services they need. Everyone deserves access to safe, reliable, clean, public transportation."

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: TxDot to receive $22.8 million to improve rural transit