The Commonwealth Transportation Board authorized an additional $11 million in statewide public transportation operating funding to be made available to all Virginia public transportation agencies suffering major ridership losses and additional operating expenses due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Commonwealth of Virginia’s related public health response.
“The onset and continued spread of COVID-19 has had extraordinary and disproportionate impacts on Virginia’s public transit industry and the communities they serve,” said Secretary of Transportation Shannon Valentine. “As more social distancing is implemented, we recognize that reduced service and significant ridership losses lead to diminished revenue and more challenges ahead.”
The $11 million is equivalent to one-month of statewide operating revenues currently allocated to the Commonwealth Mass Transit Fund. The funding, allocated to local public transit agencies by formula, will be available by early April.
Specific information regarding amounts made to each agency is available on DRPT’s COVID-19 Pandemic Response and Mitigation website.
Additionally, the emergency funding was identified from prior years savings due to DRPT’s Making Efficient + Responsible Investments in Transit (MERIT) management program, creating no negative impact to current allocations.
“Transit agencies had to take immediate steps to minimize the risk to their employees, customers, and communities, far beyond anything envisioned in their operating budgets,” said DRPT Director Jennifer Mitchell. “Today’s action enables DRPT to respond quickly and equitably to help their agency needs.”
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