RTA Access to Transit Program Awarded Funding to Improve Bike and Pedestrian Connections to Transit

The RTA Access to Transit program has received funding from the Federal Transit Administration through the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) program for seven projects that will improve bike and pedestrian access to the regional transit system. A total of $4.03 million — consisting of roughly $3.2 million in federal funds, $248,000 in local funds and $558,000 in RTA funds — will be invested in sidewalks, crosswalks, bus shelters, signage, covered bike parking, and other capital improvements at transit stations and along bus routes.

access to transit mt prospect

Mount Prospect participated in the Access to Transit program in 2016. Improvements included new shelters and pads to accommodate 60 new covered bicycle parking spaces. This project leveraged RTA funds to secure more than $130,000 in federal CMAQ funding.

By creating better connections to transit for pedestrians and bicyclists, these projects advance our goals of relieving congestion, reducing emissions, and growing transit ridership. The investments will foster a safe and welcoming environment that benefits all transit riders, regardless of how they access our regional system. Access to Transit helps fund small-scale capital projects as identified in communities’ transit-oriented development plans or corridor studies completed through either the RTA Community Planning program or the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) Local Technical Assistance program.

This marks the fourth round of CMAQ funding for Access to Transit, which has secured more than $13 million in federal, local, and RTA funds for 28 projects in communities throughout the region. To date, construction is complete on eight of these projects, with the rest either under construction or in the design phase.

Read the RTA press release for the list of new projects.