PROVIDENCE, RI - U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) today announced that Providence will receive $910,000 in federal funding to develop corridor plans for the busiest transit routes that will help better connect neighborhoods to downtown and surrounding communities and link residents to centers of employment and jobs. This planning grant builds on the Metropolitan Providence Transit Enhancement Study released by the City of Providence and RIPTA in 2009. The Metro Study evaluated potential transit improvements to meet the growing demand for transit within Providence and surrounding communities.

The five corridors targeted for development planning under this grant are:

North Main Street, which serves as a major bus route and key connector between Providence and Pawtucket.

Broad Street, RIPTA's busiest bus route and one of Providence's seven Neighborhood Markets areas, is the busiest commercial area in South Providence. A rapid bus route that will connect to the airport in Warwick is in currently in the planning and design phase for Broad Street. The Broad Street Corridor also ties into three public high schools and a new West Side bus hub that is currently in the works.

Elmwood Avenue, which connects key destinations in Warwick and Cranston, such as T.F. Green Airport, with downtown Providence.

Manton Avenue, which is the major commercial artery running from the historic commercial and industrial hub at Olneyville Square to the adjacent town of Johnston. The Manton Avenue Streetscape Enhancement project, which includes new traffic signals, ornamental street lighting, new sidewalks, and street trees, has been in design for several years and will be constructed within the next year. The development of mixed-use nodes along Manton Avenue would further help make this corridor a more livable community.

Chalkstone Avenue, which has the largest concentration of retail establishments in the Elmhurst and Mount Pleasant neighborhoods, includes important destinations such as the Roger Williams Medical Center and the VA Medical Center and is anchored by historic Davis Park—part of the City's greenway system and an important recreation facility.

"Transportation is key to Providence's economic development and Rhode Island's economy and I am pleased to have helped secure federal funding to improve travel options for residents, businesses, and commuters. This is a smart investment that will help connect more neighborhoods with downtown and leverage higher density mixed-use development in these areas," said Reed, a member of the Appropriations Committee, who helped include $150 million in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2010 to establish competitive planning grant programs to improve regional planning efforts that integrate housing and transportation decisions, and increase state, regional, and local capacity to incorporate livability and sustainability into land use plans and zoning. Reed has also secured $300,000 in Small Business Administration (SBA) funding in FY 2010 to advance the City's planning process for its proposed "Knowledge District." Reed is also responsible for a 71% increase in RIPTA's federal capital formula funding and has secured over $65 million in earmarks for RIPTA since 2002.

"Our vision for a robust public transportation system through the Transit 2020 initiative has moved closer to reality with this $910,000 grant," said Mayor David Cicilline. "I want to thank Senator Reed for working hard to secure these funds and for recognizing the important link between a strong public transit system, job creation and economic development in the region."

"The $910,000 planning grant announced today by Senator Reed to improve bus service in the City of Providence is a compliment to the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority's "Metro Transit Enhancement Study which is designed to facilitate peoples mobility needs between the state's largest urban center and the surrounding metropolitan areas," said RIPTA General Manager Alfred J. Moscola.

"Senator Reed is a national leader on these types of transportation initiatives which are designed to meet the peoples mobility needs and enhance employment opportunities in the State of Rhode Island," stated Moscola.

These Community Challenge Grant funds will be used to leverage $1.75 million in federal investments that Senator Reed helped secure to implement Rapid Bus improvements to the two highest ridership bus routes in the City along Broad and North Main streets, which included coordinating traffic signals, conducting necessary road work, and designing and building specialized bus shelters for these corridors. The average weekday ridership on these two corridors exceeds 10,000 passengers.

The corridor studies of Elmwood Avenue, Manton Avenue, and Chalkstone Avenue will focus on improvements to make the routes more transit friendly, improving the transit experience for riders and looking forward, anticipating that these routes will be the next to receive Rapid Bus improvements.

All of the corridor studies will consider bus stop location and consolidation, walking distances between stops, parking availability and parking policies, and partnerships with businesses, non-profit organizations, the major employers along the corridors and at key destinations, to create pass programs to subsidize the cost of transit.

The corridor studies will also evaluate ways to implement passenger enhancements such as stop enhancements, lighting, and access to scheduling information.

These federal funds are administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in partnership with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).

"I would like to thank HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan for making these funds available to Rhode Island and for joining with Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood to work across federal and local agencies to better align transportation, housing, economic development, and land use planning to strengthen our communities," said Reed.

Secretary Donovan visited Providence with Senator Reed in April of 2010. Senator Reed brought Secretary LaHood to Providence in June where they joined Mayor Cicilline for a trolley tour of various transit sites throughout the city.