联邦政府向西雅图地区通风运输机构提供的近12亿美元赠款标志着自唐纳德·特朗普(Donald Trump)担任总统以来最大的公交赠款。作为其指定的联邦资本投资补助金计划(CIG)计划的一部分,现任政府已签署了13项筹资协议,售价33亿美元。

The $1.17-billion full funding grant agreement for Sound Transit’s Lynnwood Link light rail extension, signed in December, comes along with a $658-million low-interest loan from the U.S. Dept. of Transportation’s Build America Bureau.

Under the grant, the FTA’s $1.17 billion equates to 36% of the total estimated cost on a project expected to begin construction in 2019 and open in 2024. Under the terms of the deal, Sound Transit commits to completing the project on time, within its budget and in compliance with all applicable federal requirements.

从诺斯盖特(Northgate)到林伍德(Lynnwood)运输中心(Lynnwood Transit Center)占地8.5英里的轻轨向北延伸,将包括四个车站和坡度分离的轨道,以及34辆车可为线路服务。

Sound Transit首席执行官彼得·罗戈夫(Peter Rogoff)在一份声明中说:“由于政府的支持,成千上万的通勤者将逃脱拥堵,这最终使我们的国会代表团和倡导者在整个地区的努力工作。”“获得这项竞争激烈的赠款也反映了联邦政府对声音运输能力和往绩记录的信心。”

该项目的设计由HNTB和Jacobs Engineering Group的合资企业处理。合资企业Stacy和Witbeck-Kiewit-Hoffman授予了8800万美元的初步建设合同。尚未授予另外两个阶段的建筑合同。

FTA代理管理员K. Jane Williams表示,区域资金的捐款帮助Sound Transit确保了这笔赠款。

她说:“通过FTA Capital Investments赠款计划提供的这些资金与大量的州和地方资金相匹配,并代表了该国增长最快且拥挤的运输走廊之一的基础设施投资。”

The federal program requires projects to go through a multiyear, multistep process for eligibility. The Sound Transit agreement marks the fourth full funding grant agreement signed under the Trump administration. Since Jan. 20, 2017, the FTA has signed funding agreements for 17 new CIG projects totaling about $4.8 billion in commitments.

Build America Bureau Transportation基础设施融资和创新法案计划允许高达6.58亿美元的USDOT信用援助援助。Sound Transit表示,预计贷款将通过较低的利息成本节省2亿至3亿美元的区域纳税人。18luck.cubSound Transit还可以利用2亿美元的先前批准的CIG资金来达到11.7亿美元,其中1亿美元来自2017财年,2018财年为1亿美元。

在特朗普和自由贸易协定还没有享受积极的press on spending grant money on transit projects, the FTA says that funding 17 projects shows the agency’s commitment to transit.

美国发言人史蒂夫·戴维斯(Steve Davis)表示,在一年半的无所作为之后,他的团队很高兴看到签署全额资金赠款协议。他说:“经过两年的大部分奖项,他们只需要一个单一的奖项就需要一个较小的公交项目,林恩伍德项目代表了一项主要的多年来持续的资金承诺。”18luck官网

Dave Somers, Sound Transit Board chair and Snohomish County executive, calls this agreement a win: “This is great news for everyone in the Puget Sound region who wants to see more commuting options and our freeway congestion eased.”