U.S-Bidden Government To Allocate $220 Million For Modernising Ferry Services In Rural And Urban Communities

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) of the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) declared an award of $220 million from Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to sustain or improve passenger ferry service in urban and rural areas.

Every month, roughly three million people take the ferry. Previous funds have assisted transportation agencies in improving ferry service to Maine from Alaska to Georgia and California.

Ferries are the best way for many Americans to get to work, school, or a hospital, especially on island communities, including Alaska Native villages, said Pete Buttigieg, the U.S. Transportation Secretary. Everyone deserves access to affordable, reliable transportation options, and thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America goal, this is a crucial step to improve ferry service across the country.

This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) includes two grant programs: the Passenger Ferry Program and the Ferry Service for Rural Communities Program.

The Passenger Ferry Program provides capital funding for projects that purchase, replace, or renovate terminals, passenger ferries, and supporting equipment. $50.1 million is available for Fiscal Year (FY) 2023, with $5 million set aside expressly for low- and zero-emission ferries and supporting facilities/equipment.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Act established the Ferry Service for Rural Towns Program, which provides funds to ensure important ferry service in rural towns. The funds will support/expand ferry services in remote areas through capital, planning, and operational assistance. $170 million will be available for fiscal year 2023.

Passenger ferries offer critical, affordable travel for people throughout the United States. Still, they are facing a backlog of state of good maintenance and safety investments, said Nuria Fernandez, Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration.

This funding will modernize and extend transit systems, decrease greenhouse gas emissions, and promote equity by making transit accessible to more individuals while sustaining and creating well-paying jobs.

Earlier this year, the FTA declared USD 384.4 million for project selections via its Ferry Grant Programs, with almost one hundred million dollars going toward the agency’s third Ferry Program, the Electric or Low-Emitting Ferry Pilot Program that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector. The whole list of grants can be found here.

FTA’s website and GRANTS.GOV (FTA-2023-007-TPM-PassFerry and also the FTA-2023-008-TPM-Rural Ferry) have application instructions and eligibility information. Complete proposals must be submitted online by July 17, 2023, using the GRANTS.GOV “APPLY” tool.

This announcement is part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, which aims to grow the American economy from the ground up and from the middle out by rebuilding the country’s infrastructure, driving about $435 billion in private sector manufacturing facilities and clean energy investments in the US, creating good-paying jobs, and establishing a clean-energy economy to combat climate change and make communities more resilient.

Reference: transportation.gov

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