The Federal Transportation Administration (FTA) is accepting applications for comprehensive planning projects covering an entire transit capital project corridor under the Pilot Program for Transit Oriented Development until June 13, 2016.
FTA is prioritizing applications in corridors with significant challenges related to TOD planning, such as:
- Low levels of existing development
- Lack of connectivity to essential services
- Limited local resources for planning costs
Awards could range from $250,000 to $2 million.
Projects must be related to New Starts, Core Capacity or fixed-guideway Small Starts project that are seeking or have recently received funding through the FTA’s Fixed Guideway Capital Investment Grant (CIG) Program. Projects expected to enter development, in the engineering phase or having received a construction grant or agreement for new and expanded rapid rail, commuter rail, light rail, streetcars, bus rapid transit and ferries are eligible.
However, any proposed transit project that was awarded Pilot Program for TOD Planning funding in a prior year is not eligible for funding in the current cycle. For questions, launch the 45-minute FTA webinar held in late April.
The CIG Program is different than most federal grants because the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, requires that projects seeking CIG funding complete a series of steps over several years to maintain eligibility. The December 2015 FAST Act provides funding certainty for surface transportation projects, so governments can move forward with critical public transit projects relying on Federal partnership over the long-term.
