The City of Gainesville Department of Transportation was awarded a $24.6 million federal grant from the Federal Transit Administration through the Biden-Harris administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which aims to achieve zero emissions by 2025.
On July 9, 47 states received grants amounting to a total of $1.5 billion. The initiative provided nearly $5 billion since 2021 toward sustainable infrastructure development, like electric vehicle charging stations and legacy pollution cleanup efforts.
“Much of the award … will enable the City to purchase full-sized hybrid electric buses. The remaining funding … will be used to build the City’s first solar-generating facility at the RTS administration complex,” according to a July 10 City of Gainesville news release.
The buses could arrive as early as 2026 as RTS prioritizes the replacement of existing diesel buses based on age and mileage.
“This significant investment in clean energy technologies underscores our commitment to building a more sustainable future for our community,” said Gainesville City Manager Cynthia Curry.
The City of Gainesville currently has no timeline for the groundbreaking of the solar-generating facility but it is expected to be completed in the next few years.
Contact Morgan Vanderlaan at mvanderlaan@alligator.org. Follow her on X @morgvande.
Morgan Vanderlaan is a first-year Political Science and English major and the City and County Commission Reporter for The Alligator. When she’s not on the clock, she can be found watching, writing and reciting theatre!
