The City of Laredo has a bus and van fleet total of 67. The City is currently providing mass transportation service to more than 4 million riders annually. This has created a strain on the aging transportation fleet.

According to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) guidelines, the minimum service requirement for transit buses is 12 years or 500,000 miles. 15% of the 67 vehicles the city has in operational service are more than 14 years old. However, in 2010, 81% of the fleet will be over their designated life span. While the bus fleet continues to age, bus ridership is also continuing to increase annually. Many of the bus riders are people from low income households and people from our border city of Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. Mexican citizens cross one of our international bridges daily and board our buses to reach their destinations. The high demand and utilization of the buses has taken their toll on our equipment and as a result, the buses will need replacement as soon as they are eligible. Additional capital funding will be needed to purchase buses. If we do not replace the current buses in a timely fashion, the level of service currently provided will be greatly affected.

 

The City of Laredo needs $11 million in federal (section 5309 earmarks) funding to replacing its aging bus fleet. This amount of funding would allow the City to replace older buses, thereby assisting the City in providing better and more reliable service.

• Federal Transit Administration