Donnelly, Moran: Ensure Bus Transit Can Continue to be Efficient, Safe

Press Release

U.S. Senators Joe Donnelly (D-IN) and Jerry Moran (R-KS) introduced bipartisan legislation this week that would establish a Bus State of Good Repair grant program to help ensure buses used for public transit are safe and that funding for today's bus transit systems meets the needs of states, cities, and rural communities across the country. Funding for federal highway and transit programs is set to expire on July 31, 2015, unless Congress acts. As the Senate considers legislation to extend these programs, Donnelly and Moran are pushing for the Senate to include important funds to offset steep cuts that could jeopardize bus services and safety.

Donnelly said, "Investing in infrastructure, like bus transit, is important to our country's economy and the everyday life of families across the nation. Many Hoosiers and Americans -- in cities big and small, urban and rural -- rely on buses to travel to work, take their kids to school, or go to the doctor. Unfortunately, many of the buses that people depend on every day are in marginal or poor condition, which potentially could lead to services being cut or unsafe buses being on the road. We should not allow that to happen. The bipartisan bill Senator Jerry Moran and I introduced would help ensure that bus transit can continue to be a reliable, efficient, and safe option. I am hopeful the Senate will act on this commonsense idea when considering an extension of federal highway and transit programs."

Moran said, "Under current formula, the majority of dedicated federal bus funding goes to a small handful of select states, harming the citizens of smaller, rural communities who also depend on reliable bus service in their daily lives. As a result, transit systems across our country are failing to meet their minimum needs and are forced to put older, less safe buses on our roads. This bill will reinstate an important discretionary grant program to distribute bus funding more equitably across the states, restoring critical service to our local communities and improving public safety."

Their bipartisan bill would establish a competitive grant program to assist with the replacement and repair of buses, including the purchase of buses and related equipment to ensure transit buses are safe. In addition, the grant program would provide states with greater flexibility in how to use the funding for buses. For example, the funding could be used toward the construction of bus-related facilities.

Bus systems in the U.S. carry more than 50 percent of all transit riders, according to a report released by the American Public Transportation Association. Ridership on public transit has continued to increase, including on buses, even as funding has been reduced. The Community Transportation Association of America found that ridership on buses in cities with populations between 100,000 and 500,000 has grown by 39 million in recent years and that rural transit ridership is up more than 40 percent since 2007. This has led to a greater need for bus maintenance and replacement.

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