Durbin, Duckworth Announce More than $1.6 Billion in COVID-19 Relief Bill Funding for Illinois Transit
SPRINGFIELD – Today, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) announced that the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has awarded the State of Illinois a total of $1,623,200,130 in federal transit formula funding through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The funding will allow Illinois’s transit agencies to continue operations during the COVID-19 response ensuring transportation access to jobs, medical treatment, food, and other essential services remains available. Transit agencies in Illinois are being severely impacted by a significant reduction in fare box revenue and dedicated sales taxes due to the pandemic.
“As Illinoisans practice social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, it has impacted our transportation agencies throughout the state. Today’s federal funding will help Illinois maintain essential mass transit services while travel is reduced in the state,” Durbin said.
“Public transit agencies across Illinois are facing historic challenges that reflect the necessary and important precautions communities are taking to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, and it’s critical that we provide these agencies with the means to weather this storm,” said Duckworth. “This federal funding will go a long way towards ensuring that our transportation systems overcome the challenges of this public health crisis.”
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