BURLINGTON, IA The Iowa Transportation Commission approved more than $1.6 million in funding to support five public transit projects during a recent meeting held in Burlington. The projects are funded under the state Public Transit Infrastructure Grant Fund.

The Public Transit Infrastructure Grant Fund provides state funding assistance to Iowa's public transit systems for new or improved facilities to support their public transit services. State participation is limited to 80 percent and the balance must be matched from local sources. The Iowa General Assembly appropriates funding to this program on an annual basis. The five projects approved by the Commission are:

Construction of indoor parking facility (Region 2: North Iowa Area Regional Transit System based in Mason City): $600,000

Roof mounted solar array (Region 8: Delaware, Dubuque, and Jackson County Regional Transit Authority based in Dubuque): $84,000

Building improvements (Burlington Urban Service): $480,000

Rehabilitate facility (Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority): $369,007

Maintenance, repairs, and replacement of bus shelters (Sioux City Transit): $110,800

"The Public Transit Infrastructure Grant Fund is an important source of funding for public transit systems. This program enables transit systems to construct and maintain facilities that are critical to the operation of the system and maintenance of the vehicles," said Michelle McEnany, Director of the Office of Public Transit for the Iowa Department of Transportation. 

Public transit service is available in all 99 counties. It provides more than 27 million rides a year getting Iowans where they need to go. Visit iowadot.gov/transit for more information on Iowa's public transit systems.