Summer Newsletter from the Community Streetcar Coalition

Summer is officially here! While it's been a hot one for many of you, I hope you're staying cool and ready to dive into some exciting news about the streetcar industry.

This month's newsletter is packed with valuable information:

• Next Year's Summit is Set! Mark your calendars for our upcoming event.
• August Virtual Summit
• Membership Dues Update: Be sure to check out the changes in the membership dues structure.
• State of the Industry Report: Learn about our ongoing efforts to create this comprehensive report.
• CIG Guidance Submittal: Stay informed about our latest submissions and advocacy work.
• Streetcar News: Don’t miss the latest articles and updates towards the end of the newsletter.

As always, our Coalition thrives on active member involvement. If you have any comments or suggestions, please don't hesitate to reach out.

Thank you!

Christy Willhite, AICP  

Executive Director  

christy@streetcarcoalition.org

Register for the August Virtual Summit

We're excited to announce a webinar featuring updates on several streetcar properties in various stages, including securing support, planning, construction, and testing. Join us to hear the latest from Atlanta, Omaha, Ramsey County, LA, and Orange County about their current status and upcoming goals.

The webinar is free and open to both members and non-members, but registration is required to receive the viewing link.



Don't miss this opportunity to stay informed and engaged with the streetcar community!

SAVE THE DATE

2025 Community Streetcar Coalition Summit - Portland, Oregon

Monday, 4/28/25 - Wednesday, 4/30/25 at the Sentinel Hotel.

Early bird registration begins 12/1/24!

We had a great Summit in Charlotte! You can find photos, presentation materials, and the Summit Book online.

Again, big thanks to our Summit Sponsors: HNTB, AECOM, Herzog, WSP, Hatch, Kimley-Horn, Brookville, HDR, Stacy Witbeck, Mass Electric, Kiewit, Siemens, Traction Systems, GoMaco, Stadler Rail, RATP Dev, and Sundt.

State of the Industry Report Request for Proposal

The Coalition Board of Directors has initiated the creation of a State of the Industry Report, leveraging Power BI for its development. To facilitate this, we invite member organizations with a PowerBI Pro license to submit proposals for assisting in the report's creation and data storage. Responses to the Request for Proposal are due by Friday, August 9.

Community Streetcar Coalition Membership and Dues Structure Change

The activities and services of the Community Streetcar Coalition, such as organization management, peer exchanges, and event receptions, are funded through a membership dues structure. Invoices for these dues are sent out each July to coincide with the start of a new fiscal year. Recognizing that different organizations may have varying fiscal years, the payment deadline is extended to December 31.

This year, we've introduced a new feature for our private sector members. In previous years, private sector members were asked to sponsor the in-person Summit in addition to their membership dues to ensure maximum participation with low registration fees. This often required the management team to speculate if the secured sponsorships during the registration process would cover the Summit costs. Additionally, it posed budgeting challenges for those who hadn’t initially planned for sponsorships and had to find funds outside of their normal budget cycle.

To address these issues, the new invoices for private sector members include a base-rate membership level and an option to sponsor at varying levels each year. For example, a private sector member may choose to be a gold-level sponsor for fiscal year 2024-25 and then switch to a silver-level sponsor in FY2025-26. This annual selection provides flexibility and better budget planning.

We believe these changes will enhance our membership experience and support the Coalition’s efforts more effectively.

The Coalition Board of Directors would like to thank Carl Jackson and the Membership Working Group for there work in developing these changes.

Any questions or concerns should be directed to Christy Willhite, Executive Director-christy@streetcarcoalition.org.

FTA Corner

FTA CIG Guidance Update-Response

The CIG Program is the federal government’s largest discretionary grant program to fund transit capital investments, including heavy rail, commuter rail, light rail, streetcars, and bus rapid transit. FTA implements the CIG program, in part, through policy guidance that includes the process applicants must follow to be considered for discretionary funding for New Starts, Small Starts, Core Capacity, and Bundles of CIG projects.

A group of CSC members, led by board member Nick Stadem from HDR, convened twice to review the recent policy guidance updates and identify key issues for providing feedback to the FTA. The working group focused their comments on these areas:

1. Changes in breakpoints for environmental benefits
2. Updates to cost effectiveness breakpoints
3. The impact of supportive zoning
4. Two additional land use measures
5. The rating process for project bundles

Comments were submitted June 4. You can read the documents that were submitted by clicking on this link:

Submitted Comments

Biden-Harris Administration Announces Nearly $10.5 Million Funding Opportunity to Plan Housing Near Transit In May, FTA announced the availability of nearly $10.5 million in competitive grant funds for agencies to plan transit-adjacent development. FTA's Pilot Program for Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Planning supports local planning and investment near transit hubs to promote sustainable, livable, and equitable communities, with a focus on projects that plan for affordable housing. With funding from BIL, these planning grants are intended to link public transportation, land use, and housing to create communities that are walkable and connected to transit. This round of TOD grants will also support the Biden-Harris Administration's new Housing Supply Action Plan by providing special consideration to applications that promote housing affordability. To apply for funding, an applicant must be an existing FTA grant recipient – either a project sponsor of an eligible transit project or an entity with land use planning authority in the project corridor. See instructions for applying and eligibility information. Applications are due July 22, 2024. (Let us know if you apply.)

NTD TAM Snapshot: This report summarizes data transit agencies reported to the National Transit Database (NTD), providing an inventory and assessment of the condition of assets used to provide transit service nationally. The snapshot shows data submitted for Report Year 2022, with some references and comparisons to data compiled since 2018, the first year transit agencies were required to report under the Transit Asset Management (TAM) rule (49 CFR 625). 



Integrating TAM Data into National Transit Database (NTD) Reporting: FTA posted the recording for the April webinar on Integrating TAM Data into National Transit Database (NTD) Reporting, to describe how TAM reporting can be integrated into the comprehensive NTD reporting requirements. The session was part of FTA’s TAM webinar series to help transit agencies incorporate asset management best practices to provide safer, more reliable transit service nationwide while reducing operating costs. 

FTA announced $1.94 million in competitive grant funding is available to support research to advance emerging technologies, strategies, and innovations that make transit easier and more accessible for transit riders across the country. FTA’s Enhancing Mobility Innovation program supports research projects that will improve customer convenience, such as creating easier ways to pay for transit and enhancing transit schedules based on rider demand. Through this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), FTA will allocate funding to support rider-centered research projects in two categories: 



• Innovations that focus on new service delivery models, creative financing, novel partnerships, and integrated payment solutions; and
• Software solutions that improve ways to provide demand-response public transportation service.

Eligible applicants include transit agencies; state or local departments of transportation; Indian tribes; private and nonprofit organizations; colleges and universities; and state and local governments, including metropolitan planning organizations. This is the second round of funding for enhancing mobility innovation. In August 2022, FTA selected nine projects in six states to support mobility and innovation. View the list of past projects.

Instructions for applying and eligibility information can be found on FTA’s website and on GRANTS.GOV (solicitation number FTA-2024-010-TRI-EMI). Complete proposals must be submitted electronically through the GRANTS.GOV “APPLY” function by August 30, 2024.  

Community Streetcar Coalition