Greater Richmond Transit Co. receives $24.9 million federal grant for bus rapid transit system

Two organizations have been awarded highly competitive grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to support construction projects, according to U.S. Sen. Mark Warner’s office.

The Greater Richmond Transit Co. (GRTC) was awarded a $24.9 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant to build a bus rapid transit line from Willow Lawn in Henrico County to Rocketts Landing in Richmond’s East End. The money for the 7.6-mile line will be matched with state and local funds. According to GRTC’s Website, the total project has an estimated price tag of almost $54 million and would include 14 stations and over three miles of dedicated travel lanes for buses.

“This grant will allow GRTC to strengthen transit links across the regional economy, improving greater access to job opportunities for area residents and promoting economic development along a critical stretch of the Broad Street corridor,” Warner said in the statement.

The Port of Virginia also has received a $15 million TIGER grant for construction of the Norfolk International Terminal Intermodal Gate Complex and Interstate 564 Connector project.  The project aims to improve the daily commute for thousands in Hampton Roads by lightening congestion on Hampton and Terminal Boulevards in Norfolk.

In FY 2014, USDOT’s TIGER program received 797 applications requesting a total of $9.5 billion in federal grants. That’s 15 times more than the $600 million set aside for the program which funds significant transportation projects in the U.S.