The Federal Transit Administration recently issued a notice of funding opportunity for $343 million in fiscal year 2024 grants for projects aimed at improving access for people with disabilities and mobility needs to rail transit systems.
[Above photo by the FTA]
Those access improvements revolve around “essential upgrades,” such as the addition of elevators, FTA said. The agency added that hundreds of transit stations built before 1990, known as “legacy stations,” are not accessible to people with disabilities.
The FTA noted that this round of grants comes through its All Stations Accessibility Program or ASAP, which supports upgrades to subway, commuter rail, and light rail systems in order to comply with Americans with Disabilities Act or ADA accessibility standards.
“Transit is the great equalizer, but for too many people in some of our nation’s largest cities, that equalizer is unavailable to them,” noted FTA Administrator Nuria Fernandez in a statement. “Now, more than 30 years after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, [we are] leveling the playing field by ensuring greater access for those who rely on mass transit.”
Concurrently, FTA also has made some $4.7 million in grants available to projects aimed at improving access to transportation services for older adults, people with disabilities & low-income individuals.
That funding is available through the agency’s Innovative Coordinated Access and Mobility or ICAM pilot program, which supports projects that improve transportation coordination and enhance mobility, including access to non-emergency medical transportation.
FTA noted in a separate statement that applications for ICAM grants are due by February 13, 2024.
