WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced that the government funding measure passed last night includes $93 million in new federal funding for Ohio through the Federal Highway Administration, $8.3 million of new funding for Ohio’s public transit agencies, plus additional funding for The Ohio State University and the Transportation Research Center to expand testing of zero-emission buses.
“It’s time to put Americans to work across Ohio and around the country rebuilding our roads and bridges. This funding measure is a good step toward the infrastructure investment our nation needs,” said Brown. “Ohio is positioned to be a leader in zero-emission transportation solutions, and this bill expands work by The Ohio State University to research and test zero-emission buses.”
The spending bill that Congress passed includes funding for important Ohio transportation priorities, including:
The bill also expands testing of new low-emission and zero-emission buses, providing $6 million, up from $2 million in the previous year. The Ohio State University (OSU) and the university-affiliated Transportation Research Center (TRC) are one of just two testing centers in the nation that the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) will utilize to undertake the work. Brown – who serves as the ranking member of the U.S. Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, which oversees FTA – worked to secure the new funding, and beginning last year, he secured language to allow manufacturers of electric, fuel cell and other low-emission buses to bring their new models to Ohio for testing. Previously, all testing of new bus models had to be conducted at a single facility in Pennsylvania. Allowing OSU and TRC to conduct testing will speed the delivery of low-emission buses to public transportation agencies working to reduce fuel consumption and improve air quality. Brown was previously instrumental in obtaining a grant for The Ohio State University for testing bus components.
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