Federal money could help Charlotte Streetcar
The Federal Government recently said it will distribute $125 million nationwide for transit projects that could include streetcars – an announcement that Charlotte officials said could help the city's planned center city streetcar line.
Under the Bush administration, streetcars struggled to receive federal money. The Federal Transit Administration earlier this decade valued most of all how much time a transit project would save commuters, which made it difficult for slower-moving streetcars to receive federal dollars.
But on Dec. 1, U.S. Transportation Dept. Secretary Ray LaHood announced the FTA would pay for transit projects that improve a city's “livability.”
Some of the criteria include economic development and improvement to the quality of living in the area where the project is built.
The Charlotte Area Transit System believes the planned 10-mile streetcar line would meet those requirements.
The FTA said it would spend $125 million on transit projects such as streetcars and bus rapid transit projects, as well as $150 million for bus projects. The most any one project could receive is $25 million.
The federal government said it will award the grants in early 2010.
But that timetable may make it difficult for Charlotte to qualify because design work on its streetcar only recently started.
The Charlotte City Council this fall voted spending $4.5 million to design part of the line. Democrats who supported spending the money said it was needed to get the $450 million to $500 million project ready for possible federal funding.
Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx, who supported spending the money to design the streetcar, said last week he is encouraged by the federal government's announcement.
The streetcar is planned to run from the Rosa Parks Transit Center to Eastland Mall, via Trade Street uptown. The streetcar is different from the light-rail line in that it runs in mixed traffic and must wait at traffic lights with cars.
Charlotte won't be able to get grant money to pay for engineering work, said Paul Griffo, a spokesman for the U.S. DOT. The grants can be used only to build new systems, buy land or trains or buses.
It's possible Charlotte could create a plan to build a small piece of its streetcar line, allowing it to apply for a grant.
John Muth, interim chief executive of CATS, cautioned: “What realistically can you do for ($25 million)?”
It's unclear how CATS and the city will pay for the line. Foxx has opposed raising property taxes to build it.
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Sources: McClatchy Newspapers, Charlotte Observer, Dot.gov, Charmeck.org, Google Maps
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