TDOT offers $3.6 million for development of an intercity bus program
On Oct. 1, the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) announced an initiative to develop a statewide Intercity Bus Demonstration Program to improve transportation options for residents in the state’s small towns and rural areas. TDOT is giving private and public agencies access to a $3.6 million federal 5311(f) grant to develop the system.
A 2006 TDOT study found that traditional bus service to small towns had been significantly reduced in recent years, and that most rural transit operators in the state did not offer scheduled, regular route services, but rather operated on a “demand response” basis. “The Intercity Bus Demonstration Program will help fill existing gaps in service for our rural communities that currently have no intercity connection to the next major city,” Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen said in a statement.
Interested applicants — such as existing private and publicly owned bus operators, firms, companies, agencies and individuals — should submit an application describing a program that will provide beneficial bus transportation service throughout the state. The grant application can be found on the TDOT Multimodal Transportation Resources Division Web site: http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/publictrans/programs.htm.