Fiscal Year 2025 Bus Safety and Accessibility Research Notice of Funding Opportunity

Details: 11/18/2024. Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO): Solicitation of Project Proposals for the FY 2025 Bus Safety and Accessibility Research Competitive Funding Opportunity. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the opportunity to apply for $10,000,000 to research standard design and develop prototypes to make existing and new buses safer for operators, riders, and vulnerable road users, as well as more accessible for passengers. See the Federal Register Notice. Synopses and a full announcement are posted on Grants.Gov as opportunity FTA-2025-003-TRI. Proposals must be submitted electronically through Grants.Gov website by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on 01/17/2025.

For complete application information, see the required materials. The November 18 Federal Register Notice contains errors regarding requirements and forms for applicants.

Summary: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the opportunity to apply for funding for projects that enhance mobility innovation for transit under the Public Transportation Innovation Program (49 U.S.C. 5312). FTA seeks a project that addresses critical safety issues and technology opportunities in public transit vehicle design. Critical safety issues include rising operator assaults, continued accessibility issues for people with disabilities in and around transit buses, the need to increase operator visibility and minimize blind spots to ensure safety around a bus for passengers, pedestrians, bicyclists, and all who encounter a transit vehicle. The program objectives include research on bus designs, innovations, and technologies, as well as production of a prototype that is available through a retro fit on existing buses and for installation in new buses. The program’s key focus areas are:   

Driver Safety Systems – Changes made to the transit vehicle and technology upgrades that protect the operator and enhance the safety of those outside of the vehicle including vulnerable road users.  

Passenger Safety Systems – Changes made to the transit vehicle and technology upgrades that protect and increase the accessibility for bus passengers.  

Eligible Applicants: Eligible applicants for the Bus Safety and Accessibility Research competitive funding opportunity are: (1) Providers of public transportation, including public transportation agencies, state or local government DOTs, and federally recognized Indian tribes; (2) Private for-profit and not-for-profit organizations incorporated in a jurisdiction of the United States, including shared-use mobility providers, private operators of transportation services, technology system suppliers and integrators, bus or vehicle manufacturers or suppliers, software and technology developers, financial institutions, consultants, research consortia, and industry organizations; (3) State, city, or local government entities, including multi-jurisdictional partnerships, and organizations such as Metropolitan Planning Organizations; and (4) Institutions of higher education including large research universities, technical and community colleges, particularly those with Minority Serving Institution status. Eligible applicants are encouraged to identify one or more project partners with a substantial interest and involvement in the project to participate in the implementation of the project. 

Link and Instructions for attaching the supplemental form to the SF-424: All applicants must complete the attached supplemental form and attach it to their submission in Grants.gov. For complete application information, see the required materials. The November 18 Federal Register Notice contains errors regarding requirements and forms for applicants.

Dates: Applicants must submit proposals electronically by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on 01/17/2025. Any organization intending to apply should initiate the process of registering on the Grants.Gov site immediately to ensure completion of registration before the submission deadline. 

FTA will host a webinar on December 3, 2024 at 2:30 PM ET to discuss the requirements of the funding opportunity and how to apply. Register. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

For Further Information: For further information, please contact Maria Roell.