Community Transit awarded $37.1 million in CIG funds for Swift Orange Line BRT
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has awarded Community Transit $37.1 million through the Capital Improvement Grants (CIG) Program for the Swift Orange Line bus rapid transit project (BRT).
The Swift Orange Line will be Community Transit’s third BRT line after the inaugural Swift Blue Line and the Swift Green Line, which opened in 2019. The Swift Orange Line will connect Mill Creek to south Snohomish County and provide a link to the region’s high-capacity transit network when Sound Transit begins service on its Lynnwood Link extension in 2024.
The 11.3-mile BRT line will include 13 stations with buses operating every 10 to 12 minutes during weekdays and every 20 minutes on the weekends. The project includes improvements to two existing transit centers/park and ride facilities, 13 vehicles, queue bypass lanes and transit signal priority. Community Transit’s Swift services use an off-board payment system and all-door loading-and-unloading to provide quicker trips.
“The fast, frequent service Swift provides will be needed to help people in Snohomish County connect to and from the regional light rail system,” said Community Transit CEO Ric Ilgenfritz. “We are grateful to the Biden Administration and Transportation Secretary Buttigieg for their investment in this project and our region, and to Senators Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray and Representatives Rick Larsen, Suzan DelBene and Pramila Jayapal for their steadfast support of the continued expansion of the Swift network and a renewed emphasis on infrastructure investment.”
FTA’s project profile of the Swift Orange Line puts its total capital costs at $80.97 million of which just under 46 percent is being funded through the CIG Program. Community Transit explains the project has received $64.7 million dollars in federal funding, including the CIG funds, and $6.7 million dollars of American Rescue Plan stimulus funding.
Community Transit explains securing the CIG funds clears the way for construction to begin on the Swift Orange Line in 2022 with anticipated service starting in 2024.
Mischa Wanek-Libman | Group Editorial Director
Mischa Wanek-Libman is director of communications with Transdev North America. She has more than 20 years of experience working in the transportation industry covering construction projects, engineering challenges, transit and rail operations and best practices.
Wanek-Libman has held top editorial positions at freight rail and public transportation business-to-business publications including as editor-in-chief and editorial director of Mass Transit from 2018-2024. She has been recognized for editorial excellence through her individual work, as well as for collaborative content.
She is an active member of the American Public Transportation Association's Marketing and Communications Committee and served 14 years as a Board Observer on the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) Board of Directors.
She is a graduate of Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication.
