Cleveland RTA Expects up to $60M in Pandemic Aid

The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority will receive up to $60 million in emergency aid from legislation approved last month by Congress.

The COVID-19 relief package earmarked $14 billion for public transit agencies.

RTA’s share of the most recent aid bill will be about less than half of what it received from the CARES Act approved by Congress last March.

However, RTA Deputy General Manager of Engineering and Project Management Mike Schipper said any money the agency receives in emergency aid will be helpful in making up losses of fare and sales tax revenue.

RTA ridership is about half of its normal levels as many workers have been working from home rather than going in to an office on most days.

Schipper said RTA expects it will take most of 2021 for the agency to recover lost ridership and revenue.

He said RTA will receive its emergency funding to cover cover the cost of enhanced cleaning and other expenses brought on by the pandemic.

That funding plus money received from the CARES Act should enable RTA to have financial stability for the next two years.

If Congress passes another stimulus plan as president-elect Joseph Biden has proposed, Schipper said that could help carry RTA through 2023.

Tags: Cleveland public transit, Cleveland RTA, COVID-19 pandemic, Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, Greater Cleveland RTA, pandemic relief aid