Padilla, Feinstein Announce Over $1.2 Billion to Help LA Metro Maintain Service and Staffing Levels
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Dianne Feinstein (both D-Calif.) announced that the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority will receive $1.24 billion to help the transit agency maintain service and jobs. This funding comes from the American Rescue Plan Act, which both Padilla and Feinstein voted to pass last year.
In 2020, Metro’s approximately 11,000 workers provided 215 million trips. These funds will allow Metro to continue providing reliable service, which is critical to supporting the more than 12 million residents of the Los Angeles urbanized area.
“Public transportation workers have been on the frontlines of the Covid-19 pandemic,”Senator Padilla said. “Public transit agencies like LA Metro have maintained service through the pandemic, helping essential workers get to their jobs and keeping our economy moving. As overall ridership of public transportation has dipped during the pandemic, public transit agencies have faced the burden of maintaining service despite receiving less revenue from fares. This funding from the American Rescue Plan will help LA Metro keep their workers on the job and maintain service for millions of Angelenos.”
“Keeping public transportation up and running is critical to ending this pandemic and allowing Californians to return to normal,” Senator Feinstein said. “LA Metro has continued operating throughout the pandemic so essential workers can get to their jobs and individuals can get to vaccine and health care appointments. This money from the American Rescue Plan will allow these operations to continue and recover as we continue to fight this pandemic.”
“LA Metro is deeply appreciative to U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein and Alex Padilla, our Los Angeles County Congressional Delegation, working alongside President Biden and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, for clearing the way for our agency to be awarded $1.24 billion in American Rescue Plan Act funds today,” said Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board Chair and Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda L. Solis. “As Los Angeles County experiences another surge of infections in our nearly two year battle with the COVID-19 pandemic, the resources provided to our agency through the American Rescue Plan Act will help us weather the storm, continue on our path to rebuild and grow our ridership, maintain the highest standards of service and safety, ensure no employee is laid off, and provide equitable access to transit for all Los Angeles County residents who rely on Metro buses and trains. Metro will use the America Rescue Plan Act funds to benefit riders, including seniors, persons with disabilities, low-income and transit dependent individuals by supporting bus and rail operations and maintenance – critical activities that will ensure our transit system operates safely, efficiently, reliably, and sustainably.”
This funding is part of more than $30 billion for public transportation secured in theAmerican Rescue Plan Act, which was signed into law by President Biden on March 11, 2021. The funding comes from the $26.6 billion allocated by statutory formulas to urban and rural areas, tribal governments, and for the enhanced mobility of seniors and individuals with disabilities.
A fact sheet from Senator Padilla’s office on what the American Rescue Plan Act delivers to California is available here. The White House has provided an online resource guide to help Americans understand how the American Rescue Plan will directly benefit them here.
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