AUTHORITY ANNOUNCEMENTS
Senators Schumer and Gillibrand Deliver $100+ Million in Federal Funding for New BRT in Buffalo
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand announced today that Buffalo will receive $102,692,562 in federal funding through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) Neighborhood Access and Equity Program created in the Inflation Reduction Act to overhaul Bailey Avenue and create a brand-new bus rapid transit line to increase affordable transportation for Buffalo’s East Side.
This massive federal investment will help modernize Bailey Avenue with new safer streets for all commuters, increasing walkability and bike ability, while also improving traffic flow along the corridor by establishing a new low-no emission Bus Rapid Transit line with dedicated bus lanes to help give those who travel between University Station and South Park the smoother commute they have long deserved.
Schumer and Gillibrand explained that the Bailey Avenue Bus Rapid Transit project will help overhaul one of the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority’s (NFTA) busiest bus routes, with new modern safer streets and better transportation infrastructure to help reconnect communities and businesses along the corridor. Bailey Avenue has some of the NFTA’s strongest ridership with 2,600+ riders every weekday, but it is in desperate need of upgrades to its bus stop infrastructure, road striping, pedestrian crosswalks and road safety features. According to an NFTA study, in the past 5 years on Bailey Avenue there have been over 2,500 collisions. While the community has long expressed a strong desire for increased affordable transportation along Bailey Avenue, without robust federal funding the project likely could not have happened.
The $100+ million Schumer and Gillibrand are delivering will support the design and construction of the low or no emission Bus Rapid Transit line and fund the safety improvements along the entire 7.5 mile length of Bailey Avenue from Main Street to South Park. The plan is currently under contract, and awarded will develop a plan to improve and modernize bus service on Bailey Avenue to include features such as dedicated bus lanes, transit signal priority, increased pedestrian and bike safety features, as well as an estimated thirteen stations to provide more comfortable waiting areas to transit riders and facilitate connections to east-west bus routes and other transportation modes.
This major award is a direct result of policies worked on diligently by Schumer and Gillibrand. As majority leader, Schumer led the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act to passage with communities like those in Upstate NY top of find, delivering billions for New York State to help finally make long overdue transportation projects a reality. The Reconnecting Communities Program was created by Schumer and Gillibrand who was one of its strongest advocates in Congress in the bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help communities, like Buffalo, address the legacy of highway construction and other systemic inequalities in transportation to create more connected communities.
At Schumer’s urging when negotiating the Inflation Reduction Act, he was able to create the Neighborhood Access and Equity Grant Program – a program similar to Reconnecting Communities - funded at $3.2 billion. Today’s funding comes from this program and is a direct result of Schumer’s efforts to increase funding for reconnecting communities’ initiatives in the IRA so that places like Buffalo could have the robust federal resources they need to make long overdue investments to improve transportation in underserved neighborhoods a reality.
Today’s award builds on hundreds of millions in major federal transportation funding the senators have helped deliver on for Buffalo and Western NY. Last year, Buffalo received the largest award and became one of the first communities in the country to tap this first round of funding from the bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s Reconnecting Communities program being awarded over $55 million, and was visited by Secretary Pete Buttigieg. In 2022, after Schumer stood with Mayor Brown to advocate for funding, he helped deliver $25 million also from the bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help better reconnect Buffalo’s East Side by finally begin fixing the beleaguered roadway between Goodell St. and the Kensington Avenue.
Overall the bipartisan Infrastructure & Jobs Law has delivered robust funding for Western NY. The NFTA is expected to receive more than $156 million over five years as a result of the Infrastructure Law. Schumer and Gillibrand have also worked together to help deliver multiple major grants to the NFTA to help them improve service. Last year, the NFTA received $28,947,368 in federal funding to purchase 20 modern, cleaner electric buses and expand charging infrastructure for the fleet. In addition in 2022, Schumer and Gillibrand also helped deliver over $10 million for various transportation projects across the NFTA and Buffalo.
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