The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA), which manages the City’s surface transportation network including Muni, released its first Request for Proposals for projects it will fund with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) dollars.

The SFMTA is eligible to receive $67 million in ARRA funds to complete maintenance, rehabilitation and renovation of rolling stock, facilities and systems. These are priority projects that will help keep Muni in good operating order, maintain equipment in good repair and enable Muni to provide consistent and timely service throughout San Francisco, according to SFMTA.

The first project going to bid, which has been allocated $16 million in ARRA funding, will directly improve vehicle availability, service reliability and performance by rehabilitating approximately 40 standard and 20 articulated Muni buses.

ARRA funds are being distributed in the Bay Area by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission; the region’s planning organization that dispenses federal funds.