Third Round of Federal Funding for WA Transit

Island Transit is receiving funding to purchase hydrogen fuel cell buses to replace some diesel buses operating on Whidbey Island. Photo by Joe A. Kunzler.

Under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, the Federal Transit Administration has awarded a third round of funding for bus transit totaling $1.5B nationwide. A total of approximately $47.2M was awarded to transit operators in Washington state, mostly to fund purchases of electric buses and to complete maintenance facility renovations.

Here's the list of recipients in our state, per the FTA announcement: Pierce Transit, King County Metro, Link Transit in Chelan County, and WSDOT on behalf of Grays Harbor, Clallam Transit, and Island Transit.

Pierce Transit

Pierce Transit will receive $14,784,753 to buy new battery electric buses and install new charging equipment. The funding will be used to purchase new battery electric buses and install new charging equipment to help facilitate expansion of Pierce Transit's zero-emission fleet.

King County Metro

King County Metro will receive $6,680,083 to buy battery electric buses and continue its worker training to maintain the new fleet. This funding supplements the $33.5M grant Metro received earlier this year from the FTA to purchase 30 battery electric buses.

Link Transit

Link Transit will receive $4,462,500 to buy five battery electric buses, replacing gas-powered buses that have exceeded their useful life. Link Transit CEO Nick Covey says This award allows Link to achieve 100 percent electrification on our urban fixed-route fleet, phasing out older gas-powered cutaways that have exceeded useful life."

WSDOT

On behalf of Grays Harbor Transit, WSDOT will receive $2,639,564 to renovate an aging maintenance and operations facility in Hoquiam, WA. Improvements will include upgrading parking areas, installing new surfacing, and enhancing the roof.

On behalf of Clallam Transit, WSDOT will receive $3,655,000 to buy buses to replace heavy-duty buses that have surpassed their useful life. The new vehicles, including several for the agency's paratransit fleet, will be more efficient and reliable.

On behalf of Island Transit, WSDOT will receive $14,959,971 to buy 12 hydrogen fuel cell buses, replacing diesel buses on Whidbey Island. The Whidbey News-Times reports that Island County Commissioner Jill Johnson, who is also on the board of Island Transit, is unsure why Island Transit is planning to buy hydrogen buses when there is no local infrastructure to provide green hydrogen for them. Craig Cyr, acting director of Island Transit, says Island Transit won't buy the hydrogen buses until the agency is confident in the supply of the fuel." So far, Community Transit is the only transit operator in the Puget Sound region to have actually purchased a hydrogen fuel cell bus.

Washington/Oregon I-5 Bridge

In a separate grant, the Interstate Bridge Replacement Project (formerly known as the Columbia River Crossing project) on I-5 between Washington and Oregon received a $1.5 billion grant from USDOT's major bridges fund. Washington and Oregon will each contribute $1 billion. These plus another $0.6 billion in federal funds bring the total raised so far to $4.1 billion, approximately 55% of the expected $7.5 billion cost. Planners reportedly want to raise the rest with tolls. Critics say the bridge will be dangerously steep for cars, light rail and cyclists and the plan to add two lanes will induce more driving. Designers counter that the additional lanes are just for merging. The Coast Guard says the span is too low for boats, an issue that's still unresolved. Others have been asking the planners to consider an immersed tunnel as done in San Francisco and elsewhere. Supporters of a tunnel option claim such a tunnel would be less steep, could be built more quickly, locally (rather than with Asian imported steel), less expensively, and would preserve the riverfront and salmon runs.

11:09am, 7/16: edited to clarify claims regarding the tunnel option.