• Subscribe
  • Magazine
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Supplier's Directory
    1. Alt. Mobility
    2. Autonomous Vehicles

    JTA, city of Jacksonville host USDOT for BUILD grant event

    Feb. 15, 2019
    Sec. Chao joined in the event to formally award a $25 million BUILD grant to two projects designed to enhance mobility and economic development.
    Jacksonville Transportation Authority
    From left to right, Florida State Rep. Wyman Duggan, Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, Secretary Elaine Chao, JTA CEO Nathaniel Ford, U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, JTA Chairman Kevin Holzendorf, Jacksonville City Council President Aaron Bowman, U.S. Rep. John Rutherford.
    From left to right, Florida State Rep. Wyman Duggan, Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry, Secretary Elaine Chao, JTA CEO Nathaniel Ford, U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, JTA Chairman Kevin Holzendorf, Jacksonville City Council President Aaron Bowman, U.S. Rep. John Rutherford.

    A formal ceremony was held Feb. 8 to award Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA) and the city of Jacksonville, Fla., a $25-million Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant.

    The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) unveiled BUILD grant award winners in December 2018. 

    USDOT Secretary Elaine L. Chao joined city, state and JTA officials at the event. The BUILD grant will help finance two projects: the Bay Street Innovation Corridor and Urban Core Riverfront Revitalization.

    “In partnership with the state of Florida, city of Jacksonville and the Jacksonville Transportation Authority, this grant will pave the way for two important projects to revitalize transportation and commerce in the heart of the city,” Secretary Chao said. 

    JTA will use its $12.5 million portion of the grant to implement the first phase of the Ultimate Urban Circulator or U2C program, called the Bay Street Innovation Corridor. This project will deploy a transportation network of autonomous vehicles and incorporate smart technologies such as pedestrian sensors, dynamic traffic signaling and an integrated data exchange; from the Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center at LaVilla, to the city’s Entertainment District along the Bay Street Corridor. 

    “We want to thank Secretary Chao and the Department of Transportation for this BUILD Grant, and for her recognition of the important role the Bay Street Innovation Corridor project will play in the development of the region's transportation network,” said JTA CEO Nathaniel P. Ford Sr. “This cutting-edge project, combined with the city of Jacksonville’s Bay Street Revitalization project, will lead to improved mobility and greater economic development.”

    JTA is partnering with the Florida Department of Transportation, the city of Jacksonville, North Florida Transportation Planning Organization, the JEA and the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce on the Innovation Corridor project.

    For its part, the city will undertake the Urban Core Riverfront Revitalization and Complete Streets project to bolster the its commitment to downtown development in and around the Jacksonville Sports and Entertainment Complex and Shipyards.

    About the Author

    Mischa Wanek-Libman | Editor in Chief

    Mischa Wanek-Libman serves as editor in chief of Mass Transit magazine. She is responsible for developing and maintaining the magazine’s editorial direction and is based in the western suburbs of Chicago.

    Wanek-Libman has spent more than 20 years covering transportation issues including construction projects and engineering challenges for various commuter railroads and transit agencies. She has been recognized for editorial excellence through her individual work, as well as for collaborative content. 

    She is an active member of the American Public Transportation Association's Marketing and Communications Committee and serves as a Board Observer on the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) Board of Directors.  

    She is a graduate of Drake University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication with a major in magazine journalism and a minor in business management.

    Email