SALAMANCA — The Seneca Nation is expected to receive $407,650 in federal funds to support the Seneca Transit System during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This funding is a portion of approximately $1.2 million in grant awards for eight tribal governments across the country, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) recently announced.
The Nation also received $529,440 from the New York State Department of Transportation’s transit program, said Sharon Ray, acting director of the Seneca Nation Transportation Department.
“It’s a great privilege to get that kind of funding,” she said. “We’re trying to make sure our transit program is still running efficiently.”
The Seneca Transit System (STS) is a public bus service that provides transportation for all area residents on the Allegany and Cattaraugus Territories and surrounding communities of Western New York.
“Because we don’t collect fares because of the COVID, this will offset our ridership costs and money we’re losing in revenues,” Ray said.
Ray said the funding will also help pay for more personal protective equipment (PPE), such as face masks for riders, as well as cleaning supplies to clean the buses and the shields and barriers to keep passengers safe and 6 feet apart.
During the past few months, busses in the Seneca Transit System were only remaining on either the Allegany or Cattaraugus Territories with no bus going between them, Ray explained.
“With some of this funding, we would like to expand our services to include the looping of Salamanca, the looping of the Cattaraugus Territory and having a direct route between Allegany and Cattaraugus,” she said.
“This historic $25 billion in grant funding will ensure our nation’s public transportation systems can continue to provide services to the millions of Americans who continue to depend on them,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.
“We know many of our nation’s public transportation systems are facing extraordinary challenges and these funds will go a long way to assisting our transit industry partners in battling COVID-19,” said FTA Deputy Administrator K. Jane Williams. “These federal funds will support operating assistance to transit agencies of all sizes providing essential travel and supporting transit workers across the country who are unable to work because of the public health emergency.”
In addition to the CARES Act funding, FTA has issued a Safety Advisory with recommended actions for transit agencies to reduce the risk of COVID-19 among transit employees and passengers.
Transit agencies should follow the current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recommendations for the spread of COVID-19, which include face coverings, social distancing, frequent hand washing, facility and vehicle cleaning and other measures to the maximum extent practicable.
(Contact managing editor Kellen Quigley at kquigleysp@gmail.com)