FTA Awards $59.9M Grant for Seattle BRT Project

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced a construction grant award of $59.9 million to the City of Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) for the Madison Street Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Project in Seattle. The 2.3-mile BRT line will provide fast, frequent, reliable, and safe public transportation along Madison Street, improving connections between key destinations in downtown Seattle and densely populated neighborhoods in the surrounding area.

"Public transit helps us combat climate change and connect riders — particularly from underserved communities — to jobs, education, services, and opportunity," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. "This bus rapid transit project is a smart investment in Seattle's transportation future, and the Biden-Harris Administration is committed to modernizing and expanding public transit around the region and the country."

Branded as the RapidRide G Line, the project will operate along an east-west corridor from downtown Seattle in the west to the Madison Valley neighborhood in the east, with connections to First Hill, Capitol Hill, and the Central District. The project serves multiple major employment hubs, hospitals, and dense neighborhoods with a diverse mix of housing and services. The total project cost is $133.4 million with $59.9 million in funding provided through FTA's Capital Investment Grants (CIG) Program.

The project includes transit signal priority, a real-time bus arrival information system, off-board fare collection, and the purchase of nine low-floor diesel electric buses. In addition, the new BRT line will provide multimodal connections with the Seattle Streetcar System, Washington State and King and Kitsap County ferries at Colman Dock, Sound Transit’s Link light rail system, and other King County Metro RapidRide BRT services.

SDOT estimates that construction of the project will generate approximately 240 jobs and revenue service will begin in September 2024. King County Metro will operate the new RapidRide G Line once construction is complete.