Gainesville Transit and AC Transit are on the receiving end of millions of federal dollars.
Some $9 million is headed for the Gainesville Regional Transit System (RTS), thanks to the U.S. Department of Transportation. The money will be used to build a new facility for the operations and for maintenance and repair of RTS’s growing bus system. The grant is included among more than 300 competitive discretionary grants totaling nearly $930 million announced nationwide Tuesday by Secretary 
LaHood and Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff to rebuild and renovate America’s transit infrastructure and plan for the future. The Federal Transit Administration is providing nearly $39 million for 11 projects in Florida.
The overall project, which is expected to create approximately 300 construction jobs, will ultimately include administrative offices and a body shop. The facility, which is set to begin construction in mid-2012, is designed to obtain the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design’s (LEED) Silver Certification.
Regional Transit System (RTS) set a new fiscal year (October to September) ridership record on Friday, Sept. 30 with 10,021,824 passengers for fiscal year 2011. The previous record was set during fiscal year 2009-10 with 9,415,672 passengers.
Meanwhile, San Francisco Bay Area-based AC Transit has been awarded $6,677,074 in Department of Transportation funds to help upgrade facilities and equipment. The funding comes from the Federal Transit Administration’s “State of Good Repair” program.
AC Transit Interim General Manager Mary King called the grant “extremely good news,” particularly at a time when funding for public transit is so difficult to obtain.
“This grant will allow us to make some critical capital improvements and repairs,” King said. “We will now be able to replace elevators, upgrade our facilities to meet environmental standards, and develop an asset management database to more effectively track the condition of the agency’s facilities and equipment.”
The Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District is the third-largest public bus system in California, serving 13 cities and adjacent unincorporated areas in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. AC Transit has been serving the East Bay since 1960.