In a noteworthy moment of bipartisanship, the Federal Transit Administration's Small Transit Intensive Cities (STIC) program is poised to receive a significant enhancement thanks to Senators Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Jerry Moran (R-KS). They've proposed legislation to increase the Section 5307 grant allocation for the STIC program from 3 percent to 5 percent. This increase is aimed to improve public transportation in cities sporting populations of 50,000 to 200,000, an upgrade that would not require additional federal spending but would instead redirect existing funds to cater to the areas of highest need.
The proposed legislation could be a game-changer for smaller urban areas. "Small urban areas like Flagstaff, Sierra Vista, and Yuma are doing all they can to keep up with demand for affordable, reliable public transportation," Senator Gallego stated. His vision for the bill is to equip successful transit systems with the necessary resources to broaden their reach. Senator Moran added to these sentiments, emphasising the vital nature of public transportation in his own words, "Public transportation provides critical services to communities in Kansas and across the country as people travel to work, doctor’s appointments and more."
The backing from industry experts like Scott Bogren, Executive Director of the Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA), underscores the significance of the legislation. Bogren views the STIC program as a reward system for efficiency and effectiveness, a sentiment he shared, saying, "Small city transit operators are among the most effective and efficient in the nation." He went on to praise the proposed S.2957 bill for rewarding high-performing agencies, which CTAA fully supports.
According to its design, the STIC program doles out funds to small-urban transit providers based on achieving or surpassing performance criteria modeled on larger public transit operations. With this additional funding, transit agencies in communities like those in Arizona have been able to undertake projects that not only enhance capacity but also refine the efficiency of public transportation on a nationwide scale. The embrace of such forward-thinking measures might well signal a renewed commitment to ensuring that the arteries of our cities – big and small – remain robust and responsive to the needs of their inhabitants.
