The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced the availability of $25.8 million in grant funds to support transit planning efforts in communities across the country. The competitive grant funds are provided through FTA’s Pilot Program for Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Planning. A Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) appears in the Federal Register.  

The Pilot Program for TOD Planning provides funding to integrate land use and transportation planning efforts along eligible transit projects. The grants will fund comprehensive planning to support transit ridership, multimodal connectivity, and mixed-use development near transit stations. The Pilot Program for TOD Planning supports identification of infrastructure needs, engagement with the private sector, and development of financial tools to encourage TOD implementation, such as value capture.

Eligible applicants include FTA grantees that are either a project sponsor of an eligible transit project or an entity with land use planning authority in an eligible transit capital project corridor. To ensure that planning work reflects the needs of the local community, transit project sponsors, and entities with land use planning authority must partner to conduct the planning work. The application period will close on July 23, 2018.

FTA’s TOD Pilot Program was established under MAP-21 and amended by the FAST Act. The program is authorized through fiscal year 2020.