DENVER, CO - Today Congresswoman Diana DeGette (CO-1) joined with United States Department of Transportation (DOT) Assistant Secretary Polly Trottenberg to announce a $5.2 million Bus and Bus Livability Grant for the 16th Street Mall Shuttle Replacement Project.  This investment will go to enhance shuttle service along the 16th Street Mall, a vital commercial, residential, and retail strip in Downtown Denver.  DeGette and Trottenberg were joined at the announcement by Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper and Denver Regional Transportation District (RTD) Chair Lee Kemp.

"Public transit has a multiplier effect on the community – stimulating the economy, improving the quality of life, reducing congestion and addressing climate change – and the 16th Street Mall Shuttle is a great example of that," said Congresswoman DeGette. "The Shuttle is a connector for commuters and city residents alike, linking them between home and work, and enabling ‘life’ to take place in between. It helps the businesses along this stretch thrive, helping our city recover and creating jobs, while giving our downtown a unique, green transportation option that makes our lives just a little bit easier."

The 16th Street Mall Shuttle Replacement project is important to maintaining accessibility throughout Downtown Denver for the estimated 50,000 people who currently utilize the mall shuttle daily. With the assistance of this federal grant, RTD will replace up to eight mall shuttles, helping to improve bus availability and reduce maintenance costs in the RTD subfleet of 36 mall shuttles.  As the planned 16th Street Mall extension nears completion, these additional vehicles will be vital to maintaining transit service in the area. These improvements to the fleet will also help stimulate the local economy and drive sustainable transportation for Denver’s residents and visitors.

The Denver Bus and Bus Livability Grant is part of a $293 million federal investment to help residents in dozens of communities nationwide to enjoy major transit improvements. This grant program is part of the Obama Administration’s livability initiative to better coordinate transportation, housing and commercial development investments to serve the people living in communities like Denver.

"This investment by the Obama Administration in the Denver community will help create jobs, boost economic development and recovery, and further reduce our dependence on oil," said U.S. DOT Assistant Secretary Polly Trottenberg. "Our goals are to provide cleaner, safer, and more efficient ways to get around, and the 16th Street Mall Shuttle is a great example of that. We’re seeing more and more projects like this one because cities across America are recognizing that they can restore economic development downtown – giving citizens the choice to move between home, shopping and entertainment without ever looking for a parking space. These projects help create communities that are more prosperous and less congested." 

The grant awarded to Denver was selected from 281 applications totaling over $2 billion in funding requests. The 16th Street Mall Shuttle project will be part of the construction of bus facilities and new bus and bus-related purchases moving forward in the 31 states where the winning 47 Bus and Bus Livability projects are located. Inaugurated in December 2009, the two programs are a continuation of the FTA's effort dedicated to carrying out the Obama Administration’s Livability Initiative, a joint venture of the U.S. Department of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 

Everyone standing up here today shares a vision about the power of smart, quality transportation for our city, our state, and our nation," concluded DeGette. "Today we come together to celebrate a significant commitment of federal funding that will help ensure the 16th Street Mall Shuttle continues to drive extraordinary economic, environmental, and quality of life benefits for downtown Denver."

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