While we need to continue to invest in the new transportation projects that will help our economy grow, we also need to make sure we protect, preserve, and rebuild the transportation system we already have. That is why President Obama has long advocated for making the cost-effective, job-creating investments we need to keep our public transportation safe and reliable.
That's also why the Federal Transit Administration's State Of Good Repair and Bus Livability grants announced yesterday are so important. The $787 million we awarded will go a long way toward helping transit agencies across the nation modernize and repair their buses and related facilities to bring these systems into a state of good repair. In nearly every state in the country, we're supporting good projects that will put men and women to work improving the public transportation systems so many people rely on to reach their jobs and schools every day.
FTA Administrator Peter Rogoff was in Hoboken, NJ, to announce that $73.4 million will help New Jersey Transit replace aging buses whose long service history--more than 500,000 miles per bus--is leading to significant maintenance costs and repair delays. The new Compressed Natural Gas and Hybrid Cruisers that NJ Transit purchases will not only be more reliable, but will also reduce emissions and save on fuel costs.
In Baltimore, I had the pleasure of announcing a $40 million State Of Good Repair grant to the Maryland Department of Transportation. MDOT will replace Baltimore's 65-year-old Kirk bus facility with new, environmentally sustainable facilities that will make it easier and more cost-effective to manage all the buses that serve Greater Baltimore. This project will create good local construction jobs in Northeast Baltimore, and it will help more than 350 local Maryland Transit Authority employees do an even better job maintaining a growing fleet of energy-efficient buses.
I'm happy to see that this historic building, completely shuttered since 1973, will be restored to its position as the transportation hub for Western Massachusetts' largest city. That will go a long way to make travel easier, more convenient, and more efficient for passengers in New England.
DOT General Counsel Robert Rivkin traveled to East Lansing, Michigan,where the Capital Area Transportation Authority is receiving $6.2 million for a much-needed renovation of the Amtrak Station near Michigan State University. This station provides a vital link for thousands of students and local commuters who pass through every day to board a bus, hop a bike, or take a train. This will bring an essential building of Michigan's capital city region into the modern age, making it accessible for people with disabilities and improving safety for pedestrians.
And in California, FTA Deputy Administrator Therese McMillan was in the Bay Area where transit providers are receiving more than $45 million. Projects range from replacing old buses that have logged hundreds of thousands of miles over many years with clean, fuel-efficient vehicles to upgrading bus service as part of MUNI’s Rapid Network.
These are just a few of the 255 projects selected for FTA support. And all of the benefits these projects generate--from safety to reliability to jobs--will be multiplied across the country. That's how we keep this nation moving forward; that's how we work toward an America built to last.
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