King County Metro Gets $400M Federal Grant For COVID Recovery

Seattle WA

13 December, 2021

7:05 PM

Description

KING COUNTY, WA — King County Metro will receive nearly $400 million in federal grant funding to help support service, maintenance and hiring needs, the Federal Transit Administration announced Monday. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg's office said King County could expect $395.6 million out of the $30 billion earmarked nationwide for public transportation in the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). "Public transportation has been a lifeline for communities and the American people throughout this pandemic," Buttigieg said in a statement. "This funding from President Biden's American Rescue Plan will help protect transit employees from layoffs, keep transit service running, and ensure people can get where they need to go." I want to thank @POTUS, @SecretaryPete, our delegation in the House, and our leaders in the Senate - @PattyMurray and @SenatorCantwell - for delivering this historic investment to King County.— Dow Constantine (@kcexec) December 13, 2021The ARPA includes another $2.2 billion for "additional transit pandemic-associated need," which officials expect to dole out next year. The latest grants join hundreds of millions in other federal funds distributed around the region, including King County and its cities.