SF's Van Ness Bus Rapid Transit Project awarded $75M in federal grants

SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)— Federal transportation officials have awarded San Francisco $75 million in grants toward construction of the city's first bus rapid transit project on Van Ness Avenue.
   
The funds, announced by the U.S. Department of Transportation on Tuesday, will help cover the costs for the Van Ness Improvement Project, which will create dedicated center transit lanes and other improvements intended to reduce transit travel times and increase pedestrian safety.
   
The project, which got underway in November and is expected to be completed in 2019, includes major water and sewer system upgrades as well as new transit boarding platforms, new landscaping and street lighting, repaving and sidewalk extensions, also known as "bulb outs," at pedestrian crossings.
   
"Van Ness Bus Rapid Transit will provide safer streets with less congestion and faster transit along one of our city's most congested transportation corridors," U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi said in a statement.
   
Mayor Ed Lee described the funding as a "significant step forward in making transit faster and more reliable for all San Franciscans."