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FY25 Buses and Bus Facilities FTA Grant Application
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DESCRIPTION: Application for grant funding to expand bus fleet and modernize RTA’s bus depot facilities. |
AGENDA NO: 25-078 |
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ACTION REQUEST: ☒ Approval ☐ Review Comment ☐ Information Only ☐ Other |
RECOMMENDATION:
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Ratify the Chief Executive Officer’s decision to apply for federal funds not to exceed $27,200,000 under the FY25 FTA Buses and Bus Facilities Grant Program for the expansion of the fixed-route bus fleet and the modernization of the Canal and New Orleans East (ENO) bus depots. The total project amount is estimated at $34,000,000, with a required local match not to exceed $6,800,000. The local match is 20% for both vehicles and facilities.
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ISSUE/BACKGROUND:
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RTA is nearing the end of its efforts to overcome the impacts of an aging bus fleet, much of which was acquired in the years following Hurricane Katrina. Of the eighty-one (81) buses purchased between 2007 and 2009, 6 remain in service well beyond their useful life of 12 years, as determined by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Another seven (7) buses are also now well past their useful life for a total of thirteen (13). RTA has secured funding for thirty-seven (37) more buses to be in service by 2028: 8 23-ft small-format buses arriving in 2026, 3 40-ft battery-electric buses arriving in 2026, 6 40-ft clean diesel buses arriving in 2027, and 20 40-ft. battery electric buses arriving in 2028. Furthermore, RTA is in the process of identifying funding for an additional 8 40-ft clean diesel buses. These vehicles will replace the last of the aging fleet and will result in a restored bus fleet from 108 to a minimum of 132 by 2028, still below the 140 vehicles in the bus fleet in 2019, pre-COVID. As the fleet grows, RTA will be positioned to increase service frequency, improve reliability, and accommodate additional ridership growth.
Through the first five (5) months of 2025, RTA bus ridership is on pace to exceed pre-COVID levels when the fleet was 140 vehicles, demonstrating strong and growing demand for transit. Recent vehicle acquisitions have put RTA back on solid footing for a reliable, modern fleet. These investments have supported measurable progress in restoring services and improving system reliability. As a result, bus ridership has increased significantly from 8.7 million rides in 2023 to 9.7 million in 2024, a 12.0% year-over-year increase. Furthermore, through the first five months of 2025, bus ridership is up another 12.4% year over year. Despite this growth, the primary barrier to ensuring reliability, meeting demand, and adding more service is the limited size of the active bus fleet.
At the same time, RTA’s maintenance and operations facilities are aging. The Canal and ENO facilities were last significantly renovated after Hurricane Katrina nearly 20 years ago. Major building systems and infrastructure components are due for reinvestment to ensure continued safe and efficient operations and a quality work environment for RTA employees.
The FY25 FTA Buses and Bus Facilities Program, which provide approximately $398 million in competitive funding nationwide, presents a vital opportunity for RTA to advance its core mission. This application seeks funding for immediate fleet replacement and bus facility modernization.
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DISCUSSION:
RTA’s FY25 application will include two primary components:
1. Fleet Replacement - Procurement of eight (8) new 40-foot clean diesel buses to expand RTA’s total bus fleet from 108 today to 140 by the end of 2028. These vehicles will reduce breakdown-related service disruptions, support service expansion, and increase frequency on the busiest routes.
2. Facility Modernization - As part of a broader strategy to improve system reliability and operational resilience and to ensure a quality work environment for employees, the RTA is advancing a set of critical facility upgrades at the Canal and ENO bus facilities. Planned improvements include building envelope upgrades, water proofing, refresh of exterior paint and interior carpet, bathroom upgrades, replacement of mechanical system components, improvements to maintenance bays, and replacement of backup generators.
Collectively, these improvements will extend the facilities’ useful life, support continuity of operations in extreme weather, and help to attract and retain staff through better working conditions. The improvements will also support the transfer of fixed-route bus maintenance from Canal to ENO, which has much larger capacity and is the recommended location for RTA’s growing fleet of battery electric buses.
A full list of projects and a detailed budget are included as Attachment 2.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The total project cost is estimated at $34,000,000, with federal funding of $27,200,000 and a local match not to exceed $6,800,000. The local share will be funded through RTA’s FY2026-2027 capital budgets and is included in the adopted 2025-2029 5-Year Capital Investment Program (CIP).
NEXT STEPS:
The FY25 Bus and Bus Facilities Grant application is due by 11:59 p.m. ET on July 14, 2025.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution FY25 Buses and Bus Facilities Grant
2. Proposed budget
Prepared By: Rafe Rabalais, rrabalais@rtaforward.org
Title: Director of Capital Projects
Reviewed By: Dwight Norton, dnorton@rtaforward.org
Title: Chief of Planning and Capital Projects
Reviewed By: Gizelle Johnson Banks
Title: Chief Financial Officer
7/9/2025
Lona Edwards Hankins Date
Chief Executive Officer