Press Release

Congressman Russ Carnahan (D-MO), Senior Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, today applauded an important step in the process of awarding a $2 million grant to the Bi-State Development Agency (Metro), for the purchase of four new 65-foot buses to serve the St. Louis Metro area.

Funds have been obligated for the buses, which will replace four 40-foot buses that have met their useful lifespan. This means that the funds are set aside and will definitely be awarded.

"Transit and transit flexibility are keystone issues I have worked on during my time in Washington," said Rep. Carnahan. "It is critical that we continue to encourage safety, punctuality and comfort for public transit customers, so they can move to work, to shop, to church and to see their families back at home. Putting these new, larger buses on the road will help those who rely on public transit and will hopefully encourage more St. Louis region residents to skip the drive and let Metro move them."

The grant is being awarded under the Bus Livability Initiative Project and was selected on a competitive basis and was announced in November 2011.

For his previous work on transit issues, Congressman Carnahan was awarded the Rosa Parks Transportation Equity Award, by the Transportation Equity Network, and the Dr. Aaron Henry Memorial Award, by the Community Transportation Association of America earlier this year.