Sponsors (2)
The bill stops federal transit grants from funding streetcars to preserve federal funds and limit spending on potentially low-ridership projects, but it removes a funding avenue that many cities use to build and maintain streetcar systems, likely shifting costs and service impacts onto local governments, riders, and transit workers.
State and local governments: cannot use federal transit grants to buy or run streetcars, which frees federal transit funds for other eligible projects and may simplify grant administration.
Taxpayers: may avoid federal spending on streetcar projects that some view as costly or likely to have low ridership, reducing federal outlays on those projects.
Local governments, transit agencies, and urban communities: lose an eligible federal funding source for streetcar projects, making it harder to build or maintain streetcar systems.
Riders and transit workers (especially in urban areas): may face reduced transit options and fewer job opportunities if planned streetcar services are canceled or deferred.
Local governments and planners: may find it harder to fund projects that integrate streetcars into broader multimodal transportation plans, undermining local transportation goals and planning flexibility.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Introduced June 6, 2025 by Scott Perry · Last progress June 6, 2025
Prohibits federal surface transportation and transit grant funds from being used to buy, operate, or maintain streetcars. The change amends the Surface Transportation Block Grant Program, the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program, and two urban/transit grant provisions so that those federal dollars cannot be spent on streetcar projects nationwide, effective on enactment.