Wilsonville’s SMART Transit Earns $555,000 in Grant Awards for New Buses, Infrastructure

WILSONVILLE, OR — The City of Wilsonville’s South Metro Area Regional Transit (SMART) agency has won two competitive grants totaling $555,200. These awards, approved by the Oregon Transportation Commission (OTC) on May 17, account for 15% of $3.7 million in federal transit funds awarded statewide.

With these awards — which are augmented by a 20% funding match of $111,000 from the City — SMART intends to purchase new transit vehicles and expand alternative fueling infrastructure.

• A $435,200 federal FAST Act Section 5339 “Small Urban Bus Replacement” award is funding the purchase of an all-weather trolley bus, two small cut-away buses and a supervisor/paratransit van outfitted with an ADA-compliant wheelchair lift. All three new buses are powered by Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), a cleaner alternative to diesel fuel that advances the Wilsonville City Council goals for greater sustainability and reduced operating costs. Sixteen transit agencies in Oregon sought 47 vehicles; 27 vehicles were recommended for awards totaling $2,955,608.
• A $120,000 federal FAST Act Section 5339 “Discretionary Facilities, Equipment, Signage and Shelters” award is supporting the expansion of SMART’s CNG fueling station for buses. The funds increase the SMART CNG fueling station capacity to provide a ‘quick-fill’ option for a growing fleet of CNG vehicles. Statewide, 14 transit agencies submitted requests; nine projects, totaling $811,546, were recommended for awards.

“These grant awards are accelerating SMART’s ability to convert the bus fleet from older, more polluting diesel buses to more efficient and less polluting alternative-fuel electric-powered and CNG vehicles,” SMART Transit Director Dwight Brashear said. “Beyond those benefits, we are finding that the alternative-fuel buses are much quieter, easier and less costly to maintain and offer our riders a more pleasant travel experience.”

The OTC grants follow on the heels of a $1.45 million award in 2017 from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to fund SMART’s purchase of new electric-powered buses. SMART plans to purchase two 35-foot battery-electric buses and install charging infrastructure with the award, funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s “Low or No-Emission (Low-No) Bus Program Projects,” The City is providing a $400,000 match — 15% match for vehicles and 10% for charging stations — for a total project amount of $1.85 million.

“The City Council is pleased at the high-quality work of SMART staff to successfully win a series of transit grants from state and federal governments, which are important partners with local communities to improve our transportation infrastructure,” Wilsonville Mayor Tim Knapp said. “By leveraging federal and state resources, SMART is able to maximize value to our local taxpayers.”

For more information, contact Dwight Brashear, SMART Transit Director, at 503-570-1576, Brashear@ridesmart.com.

About South Metro Area Regional Transit (SMART): Operated by the City of Wilsonville and funded primarily by the business community through a local payroll tax, SMART carries more than 300,000 passenger trips per year. The agency maintains a fully wheelchair-accessible fleet of 30 vehicles, including three 40‐foot buses with an average age of eight years, eight 35‐foot buses with an average age of 18 years, thirteen 26‐foot buses with an average age of seven years, and four vans with an average age of six years. SMART operates in conjunction with Tri-Met, the SMART/Wilsonville Transit Center and WES Commuter Train Station, and provides express bus service to Salem in partnership with Salem-Keizer Transit District (“Cherriots”) and to Canby in partnership with Canby Area Transit (CAT). For more information, see: www.ridesmart.com.