Barbara Lee
Congresswoman Barbara Lee Announces $270 Million Grant to BART from the American Rescue Plan
“Like other agencies, BART has been hit hard during the pandemic, and these funds will go a long way to protect the BART workers who make the trains run and keep passengers secure,” said Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA). “Thank you to President Biden and Secretary Buttigieg for this important investment in our community and thank you to Speaker Pelosi and our Democratic colleagues for passing the historic American Rescue Plan to help our country make it through this crisis and come out stronger.”
By Alex Katz
Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-13) announced on March 3 that Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) will receive more than $270 million from the American Rescue Plan to maintain operations, avoid layoffs, and more resources for cleaning and sanitation.
The grant for BART is part of an additional round of funding to help strengthen Bay Area transit systems until ridership returns to normal levels.
“These funds are critical to support essential services here in the East Bay,” Lee said. “Many in our community rely on BART to commute safely to work, to get their kids to school, and to stay connected during this difficult time.
“Like other agencies, BART has been hit hard during the pandemic, and these funds will go a long way to protect the BART workers who make the trains run and keep passengers secure,” Lee said. “Thank you to President Biden and Secretary Buttigieg for this important investment in our community and thank you to Speaker Pelosi and our Democratic colleagues for passing the historic American Rescue Plan to help our country make it through this crisis and come out stronger.”
Overall, five key Bay Area transit agencies including BART, Muni, and Caltrain will receive $525 million, bringing the total American Rescue Plan transit funding delivered to the Bay Area to more than $2.3 billion.
Congresswoman Lee, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and other members advocated with the U.S. Department of Transportation to make this investment in Bay Area agencies. Distributed by the Federal Transit Administration, these funds are drawn from $2.2 billion in American Rescue Plan FTA Additional Assistance grants supplementing previous transit assistance for communities across the country.
These new investments will fund operation costs, strengthen sanitation efforts to combat the spread of COVID-19 on public transit and help avoid layoffs and furloughs.
Alex Katz is a media director in the office of Congresswomen Barbara Lee.
