Budget in Brief Table of Contents | DOT.gov

U.S. Department of Transportation
Fiscal Year 2009 Budget In Brief

FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION

Overview: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) provides leadership, technical assistance, and financial resources for safe, technologically advanced public transportation that enhances mobility and accessibility, reduces congestion, improves America’s communities, preserves the natural environment, advances economic growth, and ensures that transit systems are prepared to function during and after criminal or terrorist attacks. Transit systems safely and efficiently move tens of millions of people every day connecting people to their jobs and communities. The FY 2009 budget request includes $10.1 billion for Federal transit programs, which maintains the Federal commitment to transit, and when combined with State and local funding, will reduce congestion, improve mobility and accessibility, address critical safety and security requirements, and advance the President’s Management Agenda.

FY 2009 Budget

In FY 2009, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) requests $10.1 billion in budget authority, $644 million above the FY 2008 enacted level. This record level of funding will continue to provide stable, predictable formula funds to urbanized areas; significantly increase funding for underserved rural communities; honor multi-year funding commitments under the New Starts program; and improve services to the elderly, low income, and persons with disabilities through coordinated planning and predictable funding.

Formula and Bus Grants: FTA requests $8.4 billion for transit services, including security, planning, bus and railcar purchases and maintenance, facility repair and construction, and where eligible, operating expenses. The program includes grants specifically targeted to urbanized areas and, through States, to non-urbanized areas and to transportation providers that address the special transportation needs of the elderly, people with low incomes, and persons with disabilities. In addition, funds proposed for the Formula and Bus Grants program include $8.8 million to improve the accessibility of over-the-road buses, $25 million for alternatives analysis for projects, and $3.5 million for the National Transit Database. The following summary describes the major programs within this account:

• Urbanized Area Programs — $6.2 billion is requested for the Urbanized Area Formula program and the Fixed Guideway Modernization program to help meet the capital replacement, rehabilitation, and refurbishment needs of existing transit systems, and ensure that passengers continue to receive safe and reliable public transportation. The Urbanized Area Formula program also includes funding for the Growing States and the High Density States programs, which distribute funds to urbanized and non-urbanized areas under differing factors.
• Bus and Bus Facilities — $984 million is requested to finance bus and bus-related capital projects, including ferryboat projects, which enhance the efficiency and safety of the Nation’s transit systems. In addition, these funds will be used to acquire or rehabilitate buses to include biodiesel or hybrid electric propulsion systems to further reduce pollution in the most congested urban areas.
• Non-urbanized Area Formula — $538.1 million is requested in formula funding for States to support public transportation in areas of less than 50,000 in population. The program addresses the transportation needs of people living in rural counties that have no public transportation services and assists States in supporting rural intercity bus service by requiring that 15 percent of their annual apportionment is spent on such service. The Non-urbanized Area Formula program also includes funding for the High Density States program.
• Job Access and Reverse Commute — $164.5 million is requested for Job Access and Reverse Commute projects that provide new and expanded transportation services to connect welfare recipients and low-income persons to employment and employment support services, such as training and child-care facilities. Funds are apportioned by formula to States for projects related to the development and maintenance of transportation services designed to transport welfare recipients and eligible low-income individuals.
• Elderly and Individuals with Disabilities — $133.5 million is requested to support America’s commitment to meet the transportation needs of the elderly and persons with disabilities. Among the Americans who use transit are 35 million senior citizens who need access to dependable transportation to participate fully in their community. Transit is also important to 31 million Americans with disabilities who rely on public transportation.
• Planning — $113.5 million is requested to support the activities of regional planning agencies and States, helping them to plan for transit investments that best meet the needs of the urban and rural communities they serve. This includes funding for Metropolitan Planning and Statewide Planning.

• New Freedom Program — $92.5 million is requested to reduce transportation barriers to work for persons with disabilities by providing funding to States to implement innovative transportation solutions. This program will increase access and opportunities for Americans with disabilities, and strengthen the communities in which they live and work.
• Clean Fuels Grant Program — $51.5 million is requested to provide financing for the purchase or lease of clean fuel buses and facilities, and the improvement of existing facilities to accommodate these buses. This includes buses powered by compressed natural gas, biodiesel fuels, batteries, alcohol-based fuels, hybrid-electric, fuel cell and certain clean diesel (up to 25 percent of grants annually), and other low or zero emissions technology.
• Alternative Transportation in Parks and Public Lands — $26.9 million is requested to enhance the protection of America’s national parks and public lands, and to increase the enjoyment of those visiting parks through innovative transportation projects.

Research and University Research: FTA requests $59.6 million for transit research programs. This includes $39 million for National Research and Technology Programs to develop solutions that improve public transportation, $9.3 million for the Transit Cooperative Research Program, $4.3 million for the National Transit Institute training programs, and $7 million for the University Centers Program. Approximately $44.7 million of this request contributes to the Department’s goal of reducing congestion. FTA also requests $3.3 million for the clean fuels and electric drive bus deployment (hybrid-electric) program to promote environmental stewardship by increasing the deployment of new low-emission technology.

Capital Investment Grants: $1.6 billion is proposed in FY 2009 for the construction of new fixed guideway and non-fixed guideway corridor systems, and extensions to existing systems. SAFETEA-LU expands the New Starts program to make new non-fixed guideway transportation corridor projects eligible for funding, and encourages project sponsors to consider cost-effective transit options that may not require a fixed guideway. The request fully funds the annual cost of existing and proposed Full Funding Grant Agreements (FFGAs), which are multi-year contractual agreements between FTA and grantees. These projects include commuter rail, light rail, heavy rail, and bus rapid transit. The “Small Starts” program, requested at $200 million, will fund existing and proposed projects that cost less than $250 million.

Transit Security: $48.3 million is requested to support transit security, which remains a high priority in FY 2009. Most transit security funding is in the Formula and Bus Grants account, including the one percent of Urbanized Formula Grant funding that is required to be spent on security initiatives. Through its technical assistance and other programs, FTA emphasizes security training for transit system employees, emergency preparedness and response, and public awareness efforts.

Project and Financial Management Oversight: To provide oversight of FTA grants, $80.6 million ($64 million from Formula and Bus Grants, $16.2 million from Capital Investment Grants, and $0.4 million from the National Research program) is requested in FY 2009. Project and financial management oversight are core management responsibilities of FTA and are essential to good stewardship of Federal taxpayers’ dollars.