Skip to Content
Streetsblog California home
Streetsblog California home
Log In

Transit agencies in California will get a much-needed infusion of "additional assistance" from the American Rescue Plan. This just-announced funding can be used for "operations, personnel, cleaning, and sanitization combating the spread of pathogens on transit systems, and debt service payments incurred to maintain operations and avoid layoffs and furloughs as a result of COVID-19."

This is in addition to about $3.9 billion previously allocated to California transit agencies from the American Rescue Plan by formula - which generally means according to size of agency, number of riders served, and similar measures. That money must be spent in certain ways, but can be used for capital, planning, and operating assistance.

Transit agencies throughout the state saw ridership disappear during the pandemic shutdown. Ridership is how transit's value is judged, with funding based on it. Losing riders means losing revenue from the farebox, of course, but it also means less federal money. However many "essential workers" (essential because we all rely on them) still need transit.

Luckily the American Rescue Plan included this cushion to help transit agencies weather funding decreases that could have otherwise killed them off.

Recipients of the money are:

Bay Area:

    • $7.4 million to the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District (SMART)
    • $115 million to the City of San Francisco
    • $2.3 million to the City of Fairfield
    • $26 million for ferries run by the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority
    • $38.8 million for Caltrain
    • $270.7 million for BART
    • $75 million to the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway & Transportation District

Central CA:

    • $12 million to the city of San Luis Obispo

Southern CA:

    • $50 million to Foothill Transit
    • $525,000 to SunLine Transit Agency in the Coachella Valley
    • $15 million to the Riverside Transit Agency
    • $5 million to Access Services in El Monte
    • $13 million to Omnitrans in San Bernardino

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog California

Tuesday’s Headlines

Riding public transit for pleasure; How to increase the numbers organizing for street safety; Don't "turn down the rhetoric"; More

July 16, 2024

Incomplete Streets Part 1: How Caltrans Shortchanges Pedestrians

Caltrans has a history of failing to follow its own policies around Complete Streets.

July 15, 2024

Sustainable Transportation Advocates Need to Talk About Sustainable Urban Design

A new book hopes to act as a "magic decoder ring" to our built environment — and a powerful tool to understand how sustainable transportation networks can fit within them.

July 15, 2024

Long Beach Leads in Traffic Circles

Traffic circles aren't quite ubiquitous in Long Beach, but they're around. Riding and walking through the city one encounters circles in neighborhoods rich and poor, new and old.

July 15, 2024
See all posts