Council hears first reading of appropriation for Charlottesville Area Transit

When Charlottesville Area Transit provided information for the current fiscal year in the early 2022, officials sent over an estimate. On April 3, 2023, CAT Director Garland Williams appeared before Council for an appropriation to bring the budget closer to the actual numbers.  

“What you see before you is the operating side of the house for an additional $7,886,856,” Williams said. 

The additional money comes from three sources:

  • The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation awarded $656,581 more than had been expected.
  • There’s an additional $4,939,780 from the federal government with $938,323 coming from the Federal Transit Administration and $4,001,457 coming from the American Rescue Plan Act.  
  • There’s $2,290,495 in FTA funding for Jaunt that passes through the city’s budget.

Williams told Council that they’ve already agreed how this money will be spent in previous discussions. This action is what is known as a “true-up.” (read the staff report)

“We’ve already looked at the programming and we’ve kind of pushed it out and looking at trying to bring out more service,” Williams said. 

The second reading will be held tonight but it’s on their consent agenda. 

There are a lot of moving pieces in transit in the area. For the most comprehensive coverage of this very complex issue, check out the Transit tag on Information Charlottesville.


Before you go: The time to write and research of this article is covered by paid subscribers to Charlottesville Community Engagement. In fact, this particular installment comes from the April 17, 2023 edition of the program. To ensure this research can be sustained, please consider becoming a paid subscriber or contributing monthly through Patreon.

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