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Iowa City getting $23M in federal grants to expand electric bus fleet
Overall, Iowa gets $43.5M to buy zero- and low-emission buses and upgrades
Izabela Zaluska
Jun. 26, 2023 12:26 pm, Updated: Jun. 26, 2023 3:40 pm
IOWA CITY — Iowa is receiving $43.5 million in federal funding to buy zero- and low-emission buses, with over half of those dollars going to Iowa City to expand its electric bus fleet and build a new transit facility.
Iowa City will receive $23.2 million, which includes doubling the size of its electric bus fleet to eight. The project will improve transit system conditions, service reliability and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Federal Transit Administration, which awarded the funds.
Iowa City’s transportation director, Darian Nagle-Gamm, said the federal funds for additional electric buses and a new facility will be a “game changer” and a “necessary piece to the puzzle” of further improving the transit system for Iowa City residents.
“These two things happening at the same time is an absolutely amazing opportunity for transforming our transit system to this new sustainable technology in a new facility that will better meet our needs today and also better meet our needs for the future,” Nagle-Gamm said.
The Iowa Department of Transportation will get almost $17.9 million on behalf of five transit agencies, including the city of Coralville. The city of Dubuque also will get just under $2.4 million.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration announced Monday almost $1.7 billion for transit projects in 46 states and territories. The grants will enable transit agencies and state and local governments to buy 1,700 U.S.-built buses, nearly half of which will have zero carbon emissions.
Funding for the grants comes from the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure bill.
Monday's announcement covers the second round of grants for buses and supporting infrastructure. All told, the U.S. government has invested $3.3 billion in the projects so far. Officials expect to award roughly $5 billion more over the next three years.
Iowa City
Nagle-Gamm told The Gazette in May that the city is looking to expand its fleet of electric buses. The city currently has four electric buses that have resulted in significant cost savings and emission reductions in the first year.
The $23.2 million will be used to purchase four additional electric buses and help with the cost of a new transit facility. This would bring the electric fleet total to eight.
“We are absolutely thrilled to be awarded the full amount that we were asking for,” Nagle-Gamm said.
About $19 million of it will be used for the transit facility and $4.2 million for the four electric buses, Nagle-Gamm said.
One of the next steps will be to begin the procurement process for the electric buses. Nagle-Gamm expects it to be at least a year until those buses are in Iowa City.
Eight is the total number of electric buses the city can have at the current transit facility with the existing electrical infrastructure.
Nagle-Gamm previously said the current facility is “at the end of its useful life” and the age and condition of the property won’t allow for further fleet expansion. The facility was built in 1984.
“In order to be able to expand our electric fleet and transition to a full lower (or) no emission vehicle fleet, most likely electric in our case, we need to build a facility that's purpose built for that transition,” Nagle-Gamm said Monday. The funds will help cover about 75 percent of the facility’s overall costs.
The city is in the beginning stages of getting a request for proposals out for the facility’s design and has been working on the federal environmental planning review process, Nagle-Gamm said.
"That's probably the next big step is to bring the consultant on board to help us really imagine what we need from a facility perspective and operations perspective,“ Nagle-Gamm said.
Other Iowa agencies
The Iowa DOT will receive almost $17.9 million on behalf of five transit agencies. The agencies and funding breakdown is:
- Coralville Transit System will use $928,526 for two electric vehicles
- Clinton Municipal Transit Administration will use $1.5 million for three electric vehicles
- River Bend Transit serving Cedar, Clinton, Muscatine and Scott counties, as well as the Illinois Quad City area — will use $7.7 million toward constructing a transit facility
- Heart of Iowa Regional Transit Authority — serving Boone, Dallas, Jasper, Madison, Marion, Story and Warren counties — will use $6.1 million for five electric vehicles and facilities upgrades
- Southwest Iowa Transit Agency — serving Cass, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, Pottawattamie and Shelby counties — will use $1.5 million for three electric vehicles
“This funding will help reduce emissions of greenhouse gases from transit vehicle operations, improve the resilience of transit facilities and enhance access and mobility within the service areas of these transit agencies,” said Emma Simmons, transit planner with the Iowa DOT.
The two electric buses for Coralville will primarily be used for the city’s disability paratransit service, said Vicky Robrock, Coralville's director of parking and transportation. Robrock said the city is excited for the opportunity to introduce the first electric buses to its fleet.
This funding also will assist with workforce development activities. Simmons said the Iowa department will create a skill-based curriculum around advanced vehicle technologies, engineering, maintenance and repair that can be implemented by schools across the state.
Simmons said Iowa DOT has started conversations with two- and four-year colleges, including Western Iowa Tech Community College, Northeast Iowa Community College, Indian Hills Community College, Northwest Iowa Community College and the University of Iowa.
The city of Dubuque will get just under $2.4 million for its transit system, The Jule. The city will use grant funding to buy battery electric buses and charging equipment. This project will help the city improve service reliability and achieve its goal of decreasing greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2030.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Comments: (319) 339-3155; izabela.zaluska@thegazette.com