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(Honolulu, HI) – Congressman Ed Case (HI-01) announced today that the federal government has made another round of awards under Congress’ CARES Act emergency funding measure to the State of Hawai‘i and counties, this one to mitigate the serious impacts of COVID-19 on transit service statewide.

“This award of $107,816,109 from the Federal Transit Administration will help our counties to continue essential transit services for citizens with no real transportation options as well as keep transit employees on the payroll.”

In passing H.R. 748, the $2.2 trillion CARES Act, last Friday, Congress allotted $25 billion to the Federal Transit Administration to prevent, prepare for and respond to the transportation-related impacts of COVID-19. This award is part of an initial apportionment of those funds to the states.

“Just yesterday, Honolulu’s city bus system moved to a holiday schedule,” said Case. “That move was prompted because ridership has dropped dramatically due to the orders to “stay at home, work at home.”

“But we still need to maintain a functioning public transportation system across the state, both through this crisis and as we emerge from it, and this award will help to keep those systems going and their employees on the job.”

Case said that $91 million of the award will go to the City and County of Honolulu’s Department of Transportation Services which plans, manages and maintains the public transit systems including The Bus and The Handi-van. Another $17 million will go to the State of Hawai‘i, which will award sub-grants to qualified transit operations on the Neighbor Islands.

“The funds can also be used for administrative leave purposes,” said Case.

“For example, funds can go to pay for transit workers who have been placed on leave due to reductions in service, and to those workers who have had to be quarantined if they were suspected of having been in contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19.”