Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced funding for 191 new Recovery Act transit projects in 42 states and Puerto Rico that will help support  the nation’s infrastructure and create jobs across the country. In making the over $600 million in new awards, the Federal Transit Administration met a deadline to award 100 percent of its Recovery Act transit formula dollars by March 5.

Since President Obama signed the Recovery Act in February 2009, the FTA has awarded 881 grants totaling $7.5 billion, which means all the formula transit funds provided by the Recovery Act have now been “obligated” or committed to specific transit projects. Once funds are obligated to a project, contracts can be bid, workers can be hired, buses and rail cars can be purchased and work can begin on transit construction projects.

In the Bay Area, recipients include the San Francisco Municipal Railway, which received$18.2 million to rebuild and perform preventive maintenance on light rail vehicles, and BART, which got $17 million for railcar and station equipment improvements.

In addition,  the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District will get $6.7 million for preventive maintenance on its buses, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority will get $12.3 million to buy 20 40-foot buses,the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board will get $2.7 million for the San Mateo bridges project and the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation Department will get $2.4 million to replace bus wash equipment.

The U.S. Department of Transportation is making $48.1 billion available through the Recovery Act for all transportation projects, including highway and bridge, rail transit, small shipyards and airport construction and repairs nationwide. Of that, $36.8 billion already has been awarded.

• The following FTA Recovery Act awards were announced today for California
• City of Modesto $35,500 Preventive Maintenance
• City of Turlock $194,532 Bus transfer hub facility
• Orange County Transportation Authority $500,000 Purchase 3 35ft. AFI replacement buses for the City of Laguna Beach
• City of Vallejo $439,212 Vallejo Multimodal Station Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority $69,776 Metro Blue Line traction power substation Southern California Regional Rail Authority $4,675,477 Rehab Track, Positive Train Control, Keller Yard storage, Central Maintenance Facility Guard, Insurance.
•  City of Vacaville $115,330 Purchase 14 electronic fare boxes
• City of Santa Clarita $2,385,864 Construction of Two Transit Parking Facilities City of Fresno $1,200,000 Operating Assistance
• City of Montebello $1,925,000 Purchase 3 40ft. CNG replacement buses; Operating assistance.
• City of La Mirada $63,287 Bus security cameras and maintenance equipment
• City of Fairfield $172,340 Install 63 fare boxes Sacramento Regional Transit District $488,000 Purchase six replacement minivans; Operating Assistance
• Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District, San Rafael $244,279 Replacement of Bus Wash Equipment San Francisco
• Bay Area Rapid Transit District $16,972,052 BART- Railcar and Station Equipment Improvements
• City of Manteca $649,009 Bus Passenger Amenities
• City of Vallejo $2,009,466 Vallejo Station Municipal Transportation Agency/
• City and County of San Francisco $18,221,874 Rebuild LRVs and preventive maintenance
• San Mateo County Transit District $2,045,371 Preventive Maintenance; purchase 2 40ft. repl. buses and 2 35ft. replacement buses.
• Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board (Santa Clara, San Mateo and San Francisco Counties) $2,684,596
• San Mateo Bridges Replacement Project Western Contra Costa Transit Authority $197,637 Preventive Maintenance and Generator Purchase
• Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority $12,251,784 Purchase of 20 40ft. buses City of Union City $77,123 Purchase of 2 35ft. buses
• Eastern Contra Costa Transit Authority $1,054,888 Preventive maintenance; Bus Lifts; parking lot repairs
• Livermore-Amador Valley Transit Authority $799,046 Preventive Maintenance City of Santa Rosa $983,249 Purchase 2 Hybrid Electric Buses
• City of Simi Valley $1,024,049 Garage modernization, ADA operations, and a wheelchair scale
• Napa County Transportation Planning Agency $721,312 Bus Rehab and Shop Equipment Sonoma County Transit $488,161 Replace 1 40ft. CNG Bus
• Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District $6,682,626 Preventive Maintenance
• Central Contra Costa Transit Authority $1,107,398 Preventive Maintenance
•  City of Vacaville $527,655 Vacaville Intermodal Station
• City of Fairfield $788,484 Purchase 6 35ft. repl. buses

State Total $83,937,377