The latest COVID relief package and appropriations bill passed through Congress will provide about $975 million to the Bay Area to assist the region’s transit operators. How much needed funding each Bay Area transit operator receives will be determined later this winter, and we will keep you posted on what to expect from transit here in the East Bay. In the meantime, thank your elected official below for supporting Bay Area transit.
In December, Congress approved a combined $2.3 trillion COVID relief package and FY 2021 appropriations bill, providing $14 billion in supplemental funding to public transit to offset the massive drop in revenue resulting from the pandemic. This is less than half what transit operators nationwide were seeking, but needed still.
In the Bay Area, the Metropolitain Transportation Commission (MTC) has stated their goal in allocating this funding is to “true up” funding allocations so that each transit operator receives an amount of federal funding based on actual revenue losses, not just anticipated losses, as was the case in the last round of federal stimulus funding in July 2020.
To date, AC Transit and BART have already significantly cut service, and AC Transit only recently started collecting fares again. SF Muni is in worse shape. This needed Federal money is a short term fix that should keep these and other transit operators in decent shape and prevent further cuts until the economy recovers.
Take a moment to thank your Congressmember for supporting Bay Area transit:
Barbara Lee, 13th District @repbarbaralee
Eric Swalwell, 15th District @RepSwalwell
Mark DeSaulnier, 11th District @RepDeSaulnier
Mike Thompson, 5th District @RepThompson
Jerry McNerney, 9th District @RepMcNerney
Ro Khanna, 17th District @RepRoKhanna
Full list of Congressmembers available here.