Colorado's Transportation Commission recently received $14 million in Funding Advancement for Surface Transportation & Economic Recovery (FASTER) funds for local, regional and statewide bus operations run by governments, nonprofit agencies and others.
In addition, the Colorado Department of Transportation’s (CDOT) Division of Transit and Rail (DTR) has awarded $7.3 million in Federal Transit Administration funds to various agencies throughout Colorado. The funds will be used to expand a park-and-ride lot, replace or reconstruct buses and rehabilitate a maintenance garage.
Another $500,000 has been allocated to regional bus-route systems, and another $3 million in FASTER funds will be dedicated to Bustag, the new inter-regional express-bus service. This route runs along Interstate 25 and connects Denver, Fort Collins and Colorado Springs. It also includes I-70, which connects Glenwood Springs to Denver. This new bus service will begin on July 13.
Officials said large city bus systems won't be the only beneficiaries of these grants; 80 vehicles from smaller cities and rural communities will be repaired or replaced. These services help both the elderly and disabled in various communities.
“With recent reductions in federal funding aimed at bus projects, we put an increased emphasis this year on replacing or rehabilitating existing capital equipment, rather than building new projects,” Mark Imhoff, director of the state's Division of Transit and Rail, said. “In fact, 103 vehicles will be replaced or rehabilitated with these funds, and five RTD (Regional Transportation District) light-rail trains will be refurbished.”
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