PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation has received a $36.2 million grant award from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration to help rural, tribal and intercity bus operators that have seen drops in ridership and revenues due to the current public health situation.

The funds, provided under the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, are available to 22 rural transit providers for operating expenses and other pressing needs.

ADOT Transit, part of the agency’s Multimodal Planning Division, assists public transportation providers in Greater Arizona by administering Section 5311 Formula Grants for Rural Areas. It will administer the grant funding.

No local matching funds are required to receive this federal funding. 

The CARES Act includes $25 billion for public transportation through the Federal Transit Administration, including $2.2 billion for programs serving rural areas. This funding will support operating and capital expenses, planning and expenses related to preparing for, preventing and responding to COVID-19. 

Emergency funding under the federal CARES Act also is directly available to public transportation agencies for which ADOT doesn’t administer transit grants: large urban areas, small urban areas and tribes receiving direct funding through the Federal Transit Administration’s Tribal Transportation Program.

For more information on ADOT’s role in administering transit funding available through the federal CARES Act, please visit azdot.gov/TransitCARES.

For information on other steps ADOT has taken to support Arizonans during the current public health situation, please visit azdot.gov/covid-19-resource-center.

PHOENIX – To help rural transit providers that have seen drops in ridership and revenues due to the current public health situation, the Arizona Department of Transportation has submitted a grant application to make $35.7 million in emergency federal funding available for operating expenses and other pressing needs. 

The federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act includes $25 billion for public transportation through the Federal Transit Administration, including $2.2 billion for programs serving rural areas. This funding will support operating and capital expenses, planning and expenses related to preparing for, preventing and responding to COVID-19. 

ADOT Transit, part of the agency’s Multimodal Planning Division, assists public transportation providers in Greater Arizona by administering Section 5311 Formula Grants for Rural Areas.

ADOT will administer the $35.7 million, which is allocated to the agency under the CARES Act, for 22 public transit providers serving rural Arizona. An additional $6 million will be transferred as direct federal funding to five tribal communities. 

No local matching funds are required to receive this federal funding. 

Emergency funding under the federal CARES Act also is directly available to public transportation agencies for which ADOT doesn’t administer transit grants: large urban areas, small urban areas and tribes receiving direct funding through the Federal Transit Administration’s Tribal Transportation Program.

For more information on ADOT’s role in administering transit funding available through the federal CARES Act, please visit azdot.gov/TransitCARES. 

PHOENIX – Why is it important for you to get around to responding to the 2020 Census? One of the many reasons is especially important here at the Arizona Department of Transportation: Census results affect how we and others help you get around.

From the highways and local streets you drive to the bridges you cross to the public transportation you use, results of the 2020 Census will influence the allocation of limited transportation funding. 

“The various programs and allocation formulas are complex, but the theme is simple: You count when it comes to the 2020 Census and its importance to Arizona’s state and local transportation systems,” ADOT Director John Halikowski said. “That’s one more reason why participating helps ensure a brighter future for you and every other Arizonan.”

Full participation is especially important when it comes to getting Arizona’s rightful share of all types of federal funding. According to census.gov, each year more than $20.5 billion in federal funding to Arizona for transportation, community centers, housing, medical services and more can be tied to the census count. That’s nearly $3,000 per person per year. 

“An undercount could result in a direct loss of millions of dollars over the next decade,” said Debbie Johnson, director of the Arizona Office of Tourism and chair of the Arizona Complete Count Committee. “By responding to the Census, we can preserve the outstanding quality of life Arizona offers and plan for our future.”

Federal funding plays a big role in transportation. The federal share for most highway, road and street projects in Arizona is more than 90%, and federal funding also contributes significantly to public transit. 

In fiscal 2019, the U.S. Department of Transportation authorized nearly $737 million in federal funding for Arizona. Much of that annual allocation goes toward programs improving the national highway system, addressing congestion mitigation and air quality, and supporting metropolitan planning and surface transportation. Each of these relies to a varying degree on census data, including but not limited to population.

Also consider your local streets. Even though they aren’t part of the state highway system, full participation in the 2020 Census helps ensure that your community gets its proper share of transportation funding, not just from the federal government but through the state’s Highway User Revenue Fund (HURF).

Many of the federal transportation programs relying on census data also apply to local governments and metropolitan planning organizations. There was nearly $100 million in such funding in fiscal 2019.

Do you take the bus, light rail or trolley?  Check, check, check when it comes to the importance of population in allocating federal dollars. Population is a leading factor in how the Federal Transit Administration allocates funds for the formula grants ADOT administers for rural areas, going toward capital, planning and operating assistance. It’s also a leading way the federal government allocates formula grants for transit capital, operating assistance and planning in urban areas. 

By today, April 1, every home in Arizona will have received an invitation to participate in the 2020 Census. You can respond online, by phone and by mail.

For more information and for a link to fill out the Census online, please visit census.gov. You also can help by following and sharing from @AZCensus2020 on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.