Northeast News

September 8, 2016

KANSAS CITY, Missouri – A nearly $9 million federal grant will soon allow the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) to purchase 22 new vehicles for its fleet.

Sixteen of the new vehicles will be 30-foot buses, but the haul will also include two over-the-road coaches, two MAX Bus Rapid Transit vehicles, and two 40-foot buses.

In a Thursday, September 8 press release, the KCATA announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation had awarded it an $8,986,350 grant through the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). The KCATA noted that this will be the largest such grant awarded since 1993.

“This is a very big win for the region to stabilize and improve bus service,” said KCATA President/CEO Robbie Makinen. “It will enable us to right size the fleet, and explore innovative ways to deploy service, including the introduction of over-the-road coaches for the region.”

A total of $211 million will be distributed by the FTA during this round of grant funding. Sixty-one transportation projects were funded by the FTA, out of 284 applications received.

The new vehicles will add to the KCATA’s current fleet of just over 270 vehicles.