TAMPA, Fla. \u2014\u00a0The Hillsborough Transit Authority (HART) received its largest grant ever.<\/p>\n
Some of that funding will go to replacing older diesel buses with newer ones that run on compressed natural gas.<\/p>\n
What You Need To Know<\/p>\n
The Hillsborough Transit Authority is continuing to upgrade its fleet
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The agency got more a more than $32 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration
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It’s the largest grant the agency has ever won
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The grant will go toward converting aging disesel buses with one that run on compressed natural gas<\/p>\n
HART is an important resource for many people.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe bus is great for me, I love it,\u201d said Jayla Middletown, HART passenger.<\/p>\n
But for Middleton, it\u2019s a lifeline. Two years ago, she was diagnosed with hyperglycemia, and she said it\u2019s not safe for her to drive.<\/p>\n
\u201cI may faint or go out if I don’t eat properly, if I don\u2019t get enough sleep, it could happen at any time. So, to avoid me getting in any accidents, even killing myself, they just don’t let me drive, period,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Now, she rides the bus to and from work five times a week.<\/p>\n
HART just received its largest grant ever. It\u2019s getting over $32 million from the Federal Transit Administration to replace 33 aging diesel buses with a new compressed natural gas fleet.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll this smoke that’d be coming from all the burning, and stuff that (comes) from it, I think it’d be good for the environment,\u201d Middleton said.<\/p>\n
The latest grant HART said will save the agency over a million dollars in maintenance and reduce delays and improve on-time performance. Some of the funding will also go to expanding training partnerships to address the nation-wide technician shortage.<\/p>\n
U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor said the change will also benefit the environment.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s going to mean they’re going to have a cleaner ride on the bus. That means the air quality across the Tampa Bay area will improve. It means we’re planning for the future. We have to do more to help people get to work, to school, to shop,\u201d said Castor.<\/p>\n