Seventy-two American Indian and Alaska Native tribes will receive a share of approximately $15.5 million through the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) Tribal Transit Program to enhance local public transit service on tribal lands.

The funds were competitively awarded to tribes in 18 states for projects to continue or enhance transit services, launch new public transportation or plan for future transit needs. Tribal residents often face significant transportation challenges, as many cannot afford to own a vehicle and yet must travel long distances across rural lands to reach basic services.

Examples of some projects receiving funds include:

• The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe will receive $350,000 to continue to provide public transit service to the growing number of tribal members and the general public who use it to travel to employment, education, medical care, and other services in Eagle Butte and surrounding rural areas.

• The Morongo Band of Mission Indians in Southern California will receive $158,999 to purchase a vehicle to launch a new on-demand, dial-a-ride transit service — the first such service on the reservation — that will provide access for the general public to jobs, health care and essential services for the elderly on California’s third largest reservation.

• The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians in Wisconsin will receive $25,000 for a planning study to improve transportation options to better connect tribal members and the general public to Bay Area Rural Transit services in Ashland County.

A complete list of projects funded can be found here.

Under the new two-year surface transportation law, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21), FTA’s Tribal Transit Program will roughly double in fund from amounts awarded in recent years, but change from an entirely discretionary program to a mostly formula-based one. Over each of the next two fiscal years (FY 2013 and FY 2014), projects will be funded based on a formula that allocates $25 million to eligible Indian tribes and sets aside $5 million to be allocated competitively.

The amount of formula funds awarded is determined by several factors, including the miles a transit vehicle travels while in active service and the number of low-income individuals that reside on tribal lands. FTA is actively reaching out to tribal and rural stakeholders to discuss the impact of proposed program changes and funding priorities.

Between Fiscal Years 2006 and 2011, 172 tribal transit programs received a total of approximately $72.7 million to enhance, launch or plan for transit service on tribal lands under the FTA Tribal Transit Program.