Feds grant Tallahassee, Gainesville millions for transit infrastructure

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Florida Construction News staff writer

The City of Tallahassee will receive $11.3 million from the Federal Transit Administration for StarMetro to purchase eight electric buses, expand essential charging infrastructure and support workforce development programs.

“Tallahassee was among only 117 projects nationwide to receive this federal funding,” Mayor Curtis Richardson said. “This is yet another major accomplishment and demonstrates the City’s continued leadership in sustainability and public service.”

New charging equipment will facilitate overnight charging and enable route restructuring, allowing more parts of the community to be served by emission-free vehicles.

To learn more, visit Talgov.com/StarMetro.

Also, the City of Gainesville  will use a $26.4 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to build the city’s first solar-generating facility at the RTS administration complex and buy hybrid-electric buses.

It’s the largest federal grant for received for the Regional Transit System (RTS) to date.

The bulk of the grant, $21.9 million, will be used to purchase full-sized hybrid electric buses. The remaining $4.5 million will fund the construction of the city’s first solar-generating facility at the RTS administration complex.

“Thanks to this historic investment in sustainable public transportation by the Biden Administration, we will have one of the newest and most fuel-efficient transit fleets in the state,” said Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward. “This funding will help us better serve our neighbors who rely on RTS for safe, efficient, and reliable transportation every day.”

Once planning and permitting for the on-site solar power facility are complete, construction will commence at the RTS complex, likely within a few years. The new facility will harness renewable power, significantly offsetting the complex’s annual electricity consumption and aiding in the charging of the electric bus fleet.

The new buses are expected to begin arriving in 2026, with priority given to replacing existing diesel buses based on mileage and age. These additions will join the five hybrid-diesel buses and four battery-electric buses currently in the RTS fleet.

Through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, nearly $5 billion has been awarded over the past three years to modernize public transportation in the U.S., including approximately $1.5 billion announced this week.

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