The City of Las Cruces’ RoadRUNNER Transit has been awarded $7,891,287 by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for the Fiscal Year 2022 Low or No Emission Buses Grant Program and Bus Facilities Program.
Of the federal grant, the City will receive $5,721,073 to replace RoadRUNNER Transit diesel fixed-route buses with seven battery electric buses, purchase electric chargers, and implement workforce training. This will help reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by an estimated 887 metric tons per year.
Also, the City will receive $2,170,214 in federal funds to complete construction of a new transit maintenance and operations facility and implement workforce training. The new facility will enable RoadRUNNER Transit to expand its fleet, support new electric buses and charging equipment, and enlarge maintenance areas.
The building will support the City's transition to a fully electric fixed-route fleet while providing access to jobs, schools, and essential services. The new facility will also house the scheduling staff and supervisors for transit, as well as provide a fueling depot and bus wash building.
This will allow RoadRUNNER Transit to move from the Hadley Avenue facility, leaving that area for the City to re-designate to a new purpose. The new facility will be on Motel Boulevard, next to the existing Las Cruces Utilities.
Production of the existing order of five new electric buses is anticipated to begin in September and RoadRUNNER Transit expects to receive them in April 2023. The order for the additional seven buses will be submitted by the end of 2022, with an estimated build time of 18 months. The transit fleet of electrical fixed-route buses will be complete with 12 buses by summer 2024.
RoadRUNNER Transit is among 150 transit agencies, territories, and states, who altogether were awarded $1.66 billion in FTA grants. The funding comes from President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The funding will help meet the goal of net-zero emissions in the U.S. by 2050.
This year's funding, alone, will nearly double the number of no-emission transit buses on U.S. roadways, according to the FTA. For the first time, five percent of low- and no-emission bus funding will be used to train transit workers on how to maintain and operate new clean bus technology.
The bus grant awards – made under FTA's Buses and Bus Facilities and Low- and No-Emission Vehicle programs – are FTA's first competitive grant selections under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
FTA's Low or No Emission (Low-No) Grant Program makes funding available to help transit agencies buy or lease U.S.-built low- or no-emission vehicles, including related equipment or facilities. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides $5.5 billion over five years for the Low-No Program – more than six times greater than the previous five years of funding. For Fiscal Year 2022, approximately $1.17 billion was available for grants under this program.
FTA's Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Program supports transit agencies in buying and rehabilitating buses and vans and building bus maintenance facilities. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides nearly $2 billion over five years for the program. For Fiscal Year 2022, approximately $550 million for grants was available under this program.
A link to all projects is available by clicking here.