The Federal Transit Administration S Proposed Rule On The New Starts And Small Starts Programs

The New Starts program is an important source of new capital investment in mass transportation. To be eligible for federal funding, a project must advance through the different project development phases of the New Starts program, including alternatives analysis, preliminary engineering, and final design. The Federal Transit Admin. (FTA) evaluates projects as a condition for advancement into each project development phase of the program. FTA has acted recently to streamline the process. This report discusses the: (1) time it has generally taken for projects to move through the New Starts process and what Congress and FTA have done to expedite the process; and (2) options that exist to expedite the process. Tables and graphs.