Cohen Announces More Than $1 Million for 10 New Paratransit Vans in Memphis

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Steve Cohen (D-TN-9) today announced the Memphis Area Transit Authority will receive $1,056,000 to purchase 10 paratransit vans to replace 10 2002 BlueBird buses that have met their useful life. The funds are being made available through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA).

“It’s important that we meet safety standards and replace buses once they’ve reached their life expectancy,” said Congressman Cohen. “These 10 new paratransit vans will help the Memphis Area Transit Authority – Tennessee’s largest transit agency – successfully move commuters around the city in a safe, timely, and effective manner.”

FTA is one of 11 operating administrations within the U.S. Department of Transportation. As authorized by the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users of 2005 (SAFETEA-LU), the FTA provides stewardship of combined formula and discretionary programs totaling more than $10 billion to support a variety of locally planned, constructed, and operated public transportation systems throughout the United States. Transportation systems typically include buses, subways, light rail, commuter rail, streetcars, monorail, passenger ferry boats, inclined railways, or people movers.