RALEIGH – North Carolina transit agencies and communities will receive about $183 million for public transportation improvements as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Federal Transit Administration recently announced.
This year’s allocation is about 4 percent, or $7 million, more than last year’s IIJA funding levels.
“We are pleased to hear that public transportation will be getting these much-needed funds,” said state Transportation Secretary Eric Boyette. “This money enables the state’s nearly 100 public transit agencies to continue their vital roles connecting millions of people to jobs, healthcare, education, shopping, and family and friends.”
North Carolina’s funds for fiscal 2023 – part of a $21 billion package for agencies nationwide – will allow transit agencies to buy new buses, continue operating services, modernize their fleets and transition to new, clean transportation technologies such as electric vehicles.
The federal money is especially important to rural transit agencies who depend on federal and state funding to operate. The N.C. Department of Transportation’s Integrated Mobility Division will distribute about $45 million to rural and small urban transit agencies with the rest of the funds going directly to the state’s urban transit agencies. The division allocates its funding to rural agencies based on population, the number of riders served and other factors.