Schumer: Feds Have Agreed to Modify Transit Grant for NFTA to Speed Completion of Amherst-Buffalo Corridor Project-Now Both Alternative Analysis & Environmental Reviews can be Completed Simultaneously, Saving up to $1 Million

Press Release

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has agreed to make an important change to a federal grant for the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA), so that their efforts to study connecting the Medical Campus and downtown Buffalo to Amherst and other northern destinations can be done more efficiently and at a lower cost. In October 2011, Schumer secured a $1.2 million grant for the NFTA to begin the process of studying how best to expand their system in the Amherst-Buffalo Corridor. This process would have included both an Alternatives Analysis and an Environmental Review separately -- both of which would have been needed to move the project forward. In the recently passed 2-year transportation bill, the process was consolidated to include both reviews in one. In an April 23rd letter, Schumer pushed the FTA to allow the NFTA to use these new rules -- which will save an estimated $1 million of taxpayer investment and approximately one year of the project overall -- and he announced today they have agreed to do so. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood wrote Senator Schumer to confirm the grant would be amended to reflect Schumer's request.

"Two critical studies for the Amherst-Buffalo Corridor Project are now on the fast track; I am pleased that Federal Transit Administration has agreed to allow the NFTA to take advantage of the new expedited review process for transportation projects. This simple rule change will save an estimated $1 million and one year in the project's development; that's a year closer to a sensible system that ties the Medical Campus and Downtown Buffalo with UB's Amherst Campus," said Senator Schumer. "I cannot overstate the benefit of expansion into the Amherst corridor, which will allow doctors, professionals and students to travel easily between UB's three campuses and connect visitors from the suburbs to downtown Buffalo's attractions."

"The NFTA is extremely grateful to Senator Schumer for successfully intervening on its behalf with the FTA to amend the Amherst Buffalo Alternatives Analysis grant application. Going forward, this will provide for a faster and less expensive process" said NFTA Executive Director Kim Minkel.

The change Schumer requested was necessary because the federal funds for the project were secured for the Alternatives Analysis process, which under SAFETEA-LU was a separate process from the environmental review needed for the project. However, under the current transportation bill, MAP-21, a streamlined review process was created that eliminated the Alternatives Analysis as a separate requirement for FTA Capital Grant funding and instead relies on the evaluation of alternatives that occurs during the planning and environmental review process (NEPA). After Schumer's push, the NFTA's Alternative Analysis grant will be amended so as to allow the NFTA to perform the required environmental review work needed to ensure transportation projects more forward as efficiently and inexpensively as possible. The amended grant will still result in the best plan for local commuters, as the NFTA looks to identify the best options for expansion into Amherst and better ways to connect UB's main campus with downtown Buffalo and the Medical Campus and new UB Medical School.

As parking in the surrounding neighborhood has become a major issue, there has been increasing pressure to expand the NFTA system into the northern suburbs so that locals can park and ride the transit system into the city. Schumer highlighted that by allowing the NFTA to use the new process which combines the alternatives analysis and NEPA review, the NFTA can save approximately a year in the overall Amherst-Buffalo Corridor project, which means a quicker fix to the parking issues in local neighborhoods and critical time saved as the medical campus and the Buffalo waterfront continue to grow.

The Amherst-Buffalo Corridor presents the possibility of successfully fulfilling the dream of connecting the University at Buffalo's three campuses, creating what would essentially be a "coatless" system that will allow doctors, professors and students go to all three campuses while never having to be outside in the rain -- or, of course, the snow. In addition, it will help to alleviate the growing issue of parking shortages in both the Downtown Buffalo and Buffalo-Niagara Medical Campus areas, while increasing access from the suburbs to downtown venues such as the First Niagara Center, Shea's Performing Arts Center, and Buffalo's growing entertainment districts. The concurrent AA and NEPA studies will get the NFTA past the first hurdles to making this hope a reality.

A copy of Secretary LaHood's response to Senator Schumer's April 23rd letter appears below:

Dear Senator Schumer:

Thank you for your letter requesting that I support amending the Alternatives Analysis Grant application for the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority's (NFTA) Amherst-Buffalo Corridor project. Your letter noted that the grant, as initially allocated under the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users, would require NFTA to perform a traditional Alternatives Analysis previously required by the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) Major Capital Investments Program. Your request that FTA allow NFTA to amend the grant application because the Alternatives Analysis program was repealed by the new Moving Ahead for Progress in the 2151 Century Act (MAP-21). The current MAP-21 requirement would let NFTA do planning and environmental analysis concurrently.

The Department agrees with your request. I can assure you that FTA staff at Headquarters and at the New York City Regional Office has been working with NFTA to amend the grant application, which should be completed in the near future.

I also appreciate the need for transportation and other services over the wide-ranging area of Amherst, Buffalo, and Niagara, and how much your constituents will benefit from the improvements. If I can provide further information or assistance, please feel free to call me.

Sincerely yours,

Ray LaHood

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