Connecticut’s Department of Transportation has received a $6.7 million federal grant to modernize the CTtransit bus facility in Stamford to accommodate electric buses.
The Federal Transit Authority (FTA) grant announced Thursday will cover costs to upgrade infrastructure at the Stamford station, and is meant to handle electric battery-powered buses scheduled to come online in the New Haven and Stamford areas. Those 12 buses are currently on order, and were bought with funds from a 2018 lawsuit settlement with Volkswagen, in addition to funds from the state and FTA.
“Connecticut’s public transit system is long overdue for a modernization,” Gov. Ned Lamont said in a statement Thursday. “This grant will help in our transition to an electric bus fleet on the CTtransit system, which will provide both environmental and economic benefits to the region.”
Upgrades to the Stamford facility include updating the building’s HVAC system, electrical upgrades to handle increased loads, improvements to fire suppression systems and LED lighting upgrades.
Federal money for the Stamford facility modernization comes a few months after CTDOT received a $2 million FTA grant for a two-year program that will run autonomous buses on the Hartford-to-New Britain rapid transit bus line.
The automated buses will use Maryland-based autonomous software company Robotic Research’s proprietary AutoDrive advanced driver-assistance system technology, according to the company.
