CA-2025-007
Project Grant
Overview
Grant Description
Application purpose: The purpose of the project is to provide high-quality transit service by leveraging a dedicated guideway located parallel to highly congested segments of State Route 1 (SR 1) to improve mobility for residents and visitors.
The SURF! Busway and BRT project will improve travel time and transit reliability for existing and new transit riders along the corridor, improve multimodal connections and overall mobility, reduce environmental impacts, and improve the quality of life for those who live and work in the cities of Marina, Monterey, Salinas, Sand City, and Seaside.
The project will serve an existing transit-dependent ridership market and provide a travel alternative paralleling SR 1 for coastal commuters.
The project also represents the second phase of a countywide BRT network that is aligned with regional development goals and is expected to improve the economic and social links to major activity centers in the region.
Activities performed: The SURF! Busway and BRT project will travel a total of approximately 19.5 miles, serving 29 stations with 6.2 miles on exclusive bus-only alignment and the remainder (13.3 miles) in mixed traffic.
Service will operate between the existing Salinas Transit Center in downtown Salinas and the existing Monterey Transit Plaza in downtown Monterey via the cities of Marina, Seaside, and Sand City.
The project includes significant construction on the 6.2-mile exclusive section between Monterey and Marina with three new stations, including a 165-space park-and-ride station at 5th Street in Marina.
4.8 miles of the project will utilize the existing right-of-way of the Monterey Branch Line, a defunct rail line owned by Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC).
In addition, the project includes related bikeway and pedestrian improvements adjacent to the BRT route, branding upgrades at existing transit facilities outside the exclusive section, and transit signal priority (TSP) at key intersections along the corridor.
No vehicles will be purchased directly as part of this project; instead, vehicles already being acquired separately as part of MST's ongoing effort to replace and convert to a fully zero-emission fleet will be utilized.
Expected outcomes: The project is expected to have the following outcomes:
- SURF! offers to improve travel time reliability with the use of an exclusive separated busway.
- SURF! will increase service frequency from 30 minutes to 15 minutes (weekday peak periods) and from 60 minutes to 15 minutes (weekday non-peak periods).
- 6.2 miles of new alignment between Marina and Sand City, of which 4.8 miles are exclusive lanes along the existing Monterey Branch Line right-of-way, a defunct rail corridor owned by the Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC).
- Upgrades to amenities at high-ridership bus stops served by the BRT.
- Implementation of a transit signal priority (TSP) system at signalized intersections on either side of the busway.
- Development of a new transit station in Marina; and
- Related bikeway and pedestrian improvements in the vicinity of the busway.
Intended beneficiaries: The SURF! Busway and BRT project will improve travel time and transit reliability for existing and new transit riders along the corridor, improve multimodal connections and overall mobility, reduce environmental impacts, and improve the quality of life for those who live and work in the cities of Marina, Monterey, Salinas, Sand City, and Seaside.
The project will serve an existing transit-dependent ridership market and provide a travel alternative paralleling SR 1 for coastal commuters.
The project also represents the second phase of a countywide BRT network that is aligned with regional development goals and is expected to improve the economic and social links to major activity centers in the region.
Subrecipient activities: None.
The SURF! Busway and BRT project will improve travel time and transit reliability for existing and new transit riders along the corridor, improve multimodal connections and overall mobility, reduce environmental impacts, and improve the quality of life for those who live and work in the cities of Marina, Monterey, Salinas, Sand City, and Seaside.
The project will serve an existing transit-dependent ridership market and provide a travel alternative paralleling SR 1 for coastal commuters.
The project also represents the second phase of a countywide BRT network that is aligned with regional development goals and is expected to improve the economic and social links to major activity centers in the region.
Activities performed: The SURF! Busway and BRT project will travel a total of approximately 19.5 miles, serving 29 stations with 6.2 miles on exclusive bus-only alignment and the remainder (13.3 miles) in mixed traffic.
Service will operate between the existing Salinas Transit Center in downtown Salinas and the existing Monterey Transit Plaza in downtown Monterey via the cities of Marina, Seaside, and Sand City.
The project includes significant construction on the 6.2-mile exclusive section between Monterey and Marina with three new stations, including a 165-space park-and-ride station at 5th Street in Marina.
4.8 miles of the project will utilize the existing right-of-way of the Monterey Branch Line, a defunct rail line owned by Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC).
In addition, the project includes related bikeway and pedestrian improvements adjacent to the BRT route, branding upgrades at existing transit facilities outside the exclusive section, and transit signal priority (TSP) at key intersections along the corridor.
No vehicles will be purchased directly as part of this project; instead, vehicles already being acquired separately as part of MST's ongoing effort to replace and convert to a fully zero-emission fleet will be utilized.
Expected outcomes: The project is expected to have the following outcomes:
- SURF! offers to improve travel time reliability with the use of an exclusive separated busway.
- SURF! will increase service frequency from 30 minutes to 15 minutes (weekday peak periods) and from 60 minutes to 15 minutes (weekday non-peak periods).
- 6.2 miles of new alignment between Marina and Sand City, of which 4.8 miles are exclusive lanes along the existing Monterey Branch Line right-of-way, a defunct rail corridor owned by the Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC).
- Upgrades to amenities at high-ridership bus stops served by the BRT.
- Implementation of a transit signal priority (TSP) system at signalized intersections on either side of the busway.
- Development of a new transit station in Marina; and
- Related bikeway and pedestrian improvements in the vicinity of the busway.
Intended beneficiaries: The SURF! Busway and BRT project will improve travel time and transit reliability for existing and new transit riders along the corridor, improve multimodal connections and overall mobility, reduce environmental impacts, and improve the quality of life for those who live and work in the cities of Marina, Monterey, Salinas, Sand City, and Seaside.
The project will serve an existing transit-dependent ridership market and provide a travel alternative paralleling SR 1 for coastal commuters.
The project also represents the second phase of a countywide BRT network that is aligned with regional development goals and is expected to improve the economic and social links to major activity centers in the region.
Subrecipient activities: None.
Funding Goals
FUND PROJECTS WHEN THE TOTAL PROJECT COST IS LESS THAN $400MILLION AND TOTAL SMALL STARTS FUNDING SOUGHT IS LESS THAN $150MILLION TO CONSTRUCT NEW FIXED GUIDEWAY SYSTEMS (LIGHT RAIL COMMUTER RAIL ETC.); AN EXTENSION TO AN EXISTING SYSTEM; THE CONSTRUCTION OF A FIXED GUIDEWAY BRT SYSTEM; OR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A CORRIDOR-BASED BRT SYSTEM.
Grant Program (CFDA)
Awarding Agency
Funding Agency
Place of Performance
California
United States
Geographic Scope
State-Wide
Related Opportunity
NOT APPLICABLE
Monterey-Salinas Transit District was awarded
Coastal Commuter Mobility: Surf! Busway & BRT Project
Project Grant CA-2025-007
worth $22,170,621
from the FTA Office of Budget and Policy in January 2025 with work to be completed primarily in California United States.
The grant
has a duration of 3 years 2 months and
was awarded through assistance program 20.500 Federal Transit Capital Investment Grants.
$76,271,277 (77.0%) of this Project Grant was funded by non-federal sources.
Status
(Ongoing)
Last Modified 1/21/25
Period of Performance
1/13/25
Start Date
3/31/28
End Date
Funding Split
$22.2M
Federal Obligation
$76.3M
Non-Federal Obligation
$98.4M
Total Obligated
Activity Timeline
Additional Detail
Award ID FAIN
CA-2025-007
SAI Number
CA-2025-007-00-20.500
Award ID URI
SAI EXEMPT
Awardee Classifications
Other
Awarding Office
699J58 REGION 9 DOT FTA
Funding Office
693JJ8 OFFICE OF BUDGET AND POLICY(TBP)
Awardee UEI
VJR4MN46J5C6
Awardee CAGE
59VZ9
Performance District
CA-90
Senators
Dianne Feinstein
Alejandro Padilla
Alejandro Padilla
Modified: 1/21/25