Mass_Transit_March_2021 - 8

PEOPLE & PLACES

THE LASTEST INDUSTRY NEWS
the project began September 2019 and
on Feb. 25, DART started the initial bridge
construction of the line's Josey Lane
Bridge in Carrollton. The Silver Line is
expected to open for revenue service by
March 2023.
MassTransitmag.com/21211965

Illustration: ASCE

TRANSIT'S SCORE remained unchanged from ASCE's 2017 report card.

ASCE unveils its report card for 2021
on America's infrastructure
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) revealed its 2021 Report
Card for America's Infrastructure on March 3, which evaluated 17 categories across the nation and is released every four years. Transit's score
remained unchanged from the last report card released in 2017, coming in
at a D minus-the lowest score out of the categories. Rail's score (includes
passenger and freight rail) also remained unchanged, coming in at a B. In
addition to the scores, the report noted that 45 percent of Americans don't
have access to public transit. Simultaneously, many transit systems are
aging and lack the funds to keep up to date on the State of Good Repair,
which ASCE says is being exasperated by the COVID-19 pandemic. In
total, 36 percent of the transit maintenance and storage facilities across
the U.S. are in poor condition and over a 10-year period, 19 percent of
vehicles and six percent of fixed guideway elements such as tracks and
tunnels were rated in poor condition. There is also a $176-billion State of
Good Repair backlog, a deficit that is expected to grow to more than $270
billion through 2029, the report states.
MassTransitmag.com/21212862

DART's refinancing of Silver
Line RRIF loan estimated
to save $190 million
▶ Dallas

Area Rapid Transit (DART) has
refinanced its $908-million Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing
(RRIF) loan through the U.S. Department
of Transportation's (USDOT) Build America Bureau. DART is expected to save an
estimated $190 million on interest costs
with the refinance, which comes at a
good time as transit systems contend

with pandemic-induced financial stress
from lack of revenues. The RRIF loan
was originally secured for the 26-mile
passenger rail project in December 2018
and the loan proceeds will finance part
of the costs of the $1.2-billion project. The Silver Line is being built from
Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) International
Airport eastward to the Plano/Richardson
area, covering three counties and seven
cities. The project is being constructed
primarily within the existing DART-owned
railroad right-of-way. Construction on

Mass Transit | MassTransitmag.com | MARCH 2021

Infrastructure Canada
Credit

OTTAWA MAYOR Jim Watson and
Canada Minister of Infrastructure and
Communities Catherine McKenna.

Canada commits funding
to help transit systems
transition to electric power
▶ The

government of Canada has committed C$2.75 billion (US$2.17 billion)
over the next five years toward helping
transportation providers transition to
electric power. The funding is part of
the C$14.9 billion (US$11.73 billion) in
dedicated transit investment announced
in February. The federal funding is in
addition to the C$1.5 billion (US$1.18
billion) the Canada Infrastructure Bank
has committed to zero-emission buses
and associated infrastructure as part of
its three-year Growth Plan. The newly
announced funding will start in 2021 and,
according to the Canadian government,
" support municipalities, transit authorities
and school boards with transition planning, increase ambition on the electrification of transit systems and deliver on
the government's commitment to help
purchase 5,000 zero-emission buses
over the next five years. "
MassTransitmag.com/21213032

FTA will not count federal loans
against projects in CIG Program
▶ The

Federal Transit Administration
(FTA) published a letter rescinding a June
2018 " Dear Colleague " letter from the
previous administration that transportation advocates, such as Transportation
for America, said " added strenuous
requirements to the Capital Investment
Grants Program. " The Trump Administration held a view that federal loans would
be weighed as part of a CIG Program
project's federal share and not the local

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Mass_Transit_March_2021

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