The Federal Transit Administration said $25.7 million was awarded through competitive grants through the Alternative Analysis grant program to help community officials in 15 states evaluate and select the best options to help place new or expanded transit systems in their communities.

The Alternatives Analysis grant program is the first key milestone in the FTA New Starts process - the primary source for federally funded transit projects. Conducting an "alternatives analysis" ensures that various costs and benefits, route options, and other important considerations are taken into account as part of FTA's capital planning process, known as New Starts. The analysis is complete once a locally preferred alternative is selected and adopted as part of the affected region's long-range transportation plan.

The 24 winning proposals were submitted by transit agencies from across the country as part of a nationwide competition. Winning proposals demonstrated need by identifying a substantial transportation challenge in a particular corridor and proposing technical work that would provide cost and benefit information on the alternatives studied to address the problem. Priority was given to project sponsors coordinating transit project development with relevant public housing agencies, or with relevant energy or environmental public agencies.

The agency reviewed 67 applications from 30 states seeking a total of $73 million in funds.

The winning project proposals include:

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. District Department of Transportation
 Project: DC Streetcar Alignment and Vehicle Propulsion Technology 
Grant Amount: $1,000,000. 
This funding will support the evaluation of alignment extensions to the K Street Transitway and streetcar propulsion technologies. The alignment extensions being considered are at the Washington Circle area and between Mount Vernon Square and Union Station. Current transit ridership, support for infill development and potential to improve access to services justify an investment.

ILLINOIS. Chicago Transit Authority. Project: Western Corridor. 
Grant Amount: $1,600,000. 
This project will look at transit improvements in this North-South corridor that would support the Chicago Transit Authority's (CTA) radial heavy-rail network. The corridor runs along Western and Ashland Avenues in Chicago between Howard and 95th Streets. The justification of need: the corridor contains regional destinations, offers many redevelopment sites, has high bus ridership and is home to many zero-car households.


MINNESOTA. City of Minneapolis. Project: Nicollet-Central Urban Circulator
. Grant Amount: $900,000
. These corridors, currently served by frequent local bus routes, are home to significant proportions of zero-car households and contain several redevelopment sites. The corridors run down Nicollet and Central Avenues between the 46th Street/I-35W BRT station in Minneapolis, downtown Minneapolis and the Columbia Heights Transit Center. A transit investment here could leverage city grant programs for affordable housing, business assistance, and energy efficiency. Economic development and affordable housing implementation plans will be developed in parallel. 

MISSOURI/ Kansas City/Jackson County Project: Three corridors: I-70 between downtown Kansas City and Odessa; 
SR 350/Rock Island Railroad between downtown Kansas City and Pleasant Hill; Central Kansas City between the Rivermarket neighborhood and Union Station. Grant Amount: $1,800,000
. The proposed study builds on findings from the regional systems planning efforts that have identified the corridors with greatest need for major mobility improvements. The study targets a key portion of the metro area primarily focused in Jackson County, but also crossing into neighboring Lafayette and Cass counties in Missouri. The study has strong local support, is consistent with livability-oriented planning efforts in the region, and is positioned to advance transportation solutions critical to the community's regional vision.

NEW YORK. New York City Department of Transportation. 
Project: La Guardia Airport Transit Corridor. 
Grant Amount: $1,250,000. 
This project includes corridors connecting La Guardia Airport with Jackson Heights, Astoria, and downtown Flushing. La Guardia is a busy airport with no rapid transit connection. Current bus service is slow, unreliable and heavily used by airport employees and area residents. The project will also support infill development projects in Willets Point and downtown Flushing. 

TEXAS. Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority
. Project: North Central Corridor. 
Grant Amount: $1,975,000. 
This corridor is located between downtown Austin and Georgetown along I-35 and SR 1. The corridor contains several destinations, including mixed-use infill developments. Rapid population and employment growth in the area are expected to continue. Express buses and a single-track commuter rail line, which is contemplated for upgrades, serve the corridor. The need results from congestion.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit
. Project: D2 AA/EIS. 
Grant Amount: $700,000
. This alternatives analysis (AA) and environmental impact statement (EIS) project focuses on the Dallas central business district, roughly bounded by US 75/I-45, I-30, I-35E and Woodall Rodgers Freeway. The work entails reevaluation of the locally preferred alternative for a new light rail transit (LRT) alignment through downtown Dallas to improve linkages with land use and streetcar planning. The additional LRT alignment is needed to provide core capacity for new lines. The work plan also includes an AA for a streetcar corridor that will be identified through a parallel planning process. 

WASHINGTON. Sound Transit. 
Project: Sound Transit North Corridor. 
Grant Amount: $2,000,000. 
Light rail transit (LRT) deployment in this corridor was included in the successful 2008 Sound Transit 2 ballot measure. This corridor is currently served by express buses. It is located between Northgate Transit Center and Lynnwood along I-5 (approximately 8.2 miles). The goals of the project include environmental protection and consistency with regional land use and transportation plans. The need for this project centers on congestion relief.