FTA announces transit-oriented development planning grants to 20 projects

These grants will help organizations plan for transportation projects that connect communities and improve access to transit and affordable housing, according to an FTA news release. The program supports local planning and strategies to increase transit access and encourage ridership through mixed-use and mixed-income development near public transportation projects.

“Equitable transit-oriented development helps those at the local level respond to climate change and affordable housing challenges, particularly in underserved communities,” FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez said in a statement. “Our goal is to create access for all Americans who ride transit by encouraging mixed-use, mixed income development around new transit projects.”

Some of the projects selected for the TOD program include:

• The City of Phoenix Public Transit Department in Arizona will receive $920,000 to plan for TOD at 11 stations proposed along a 5-mile streetcar line to connect activity centers in the city of Mesa.
• The Chicago Transit Authority in Illinois will receive $800,000 to plan for TOD at four proposed stations along 5.6 miles of its Red Line ‘L’ train subway line.
• The Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments in South Carolina will receive $860,000 to plan for TOD on its proposed 21.5-mile Lowcountry Rapid Transit bus rapid transit corridor.

FTA says the new Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) provides a $18.9 million—or 38%—increase in funding for this program over five years, as compared to the previous level.