Federal grants totaling $928.5 million will fund more than 300 public transportation projects across America, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Monday.
The projects in urban, suburban and rural areas also will put people to work renovating and building transit facilities, manufacturing clean-fuel buses and helping communities plan for future transit needs, LaHood said in Detroit.
"Investing in America's transit systems, rails, roads, ports and airports will generate tens of thousands of construction-related jobs and put more money in the pockets of working Americans," LaHood said.
The grants will help in a number of areas, including replacing or refurbishing aging buses; building or improving bus terminals, garages and other transit facilities; installing bus-related equipment and conducting studies to help communities chose the best transit options, the Transportation Department said in a release. The grants were available through the Federal Transit Administration's fiscal year 2011 Alternatives Analysis, Bus Livability, and State of Good Repair programs.
"These grant funds will make sure that bus service in our communities remains reliable and desirable while putting thousands of Americans to work at the same time," said FTA Administrator Peter Rogoff, who joined LaHood in the announcement.
