Akron Metro RTA Awarded Funding From ODOT

Today, state Sen. Vernon Sykes (D-Akron) announced that Akron Metro RTA will receive a $2.05 million grant from the Ohio Department of Transportation. “These are critical dollars that are going to be targeted to help address some of the challenges our city is facing,” said Sykes. “The Elevate Akron initiative found that poor worker connectivity to our region’s job hubs hurt our economic development. This money will go directly toward connecting Akron residence with job opportunities all around the county. It’s pretty simple: for people to get to work, they have to get to work.” The funding for public transit systems were a major part of negotiations during the state’s transportation budget, which passed this spring. Sykes, who sits on the Senate Transportation Committee, helped lead an effort that doubled the state’s investment in public transportation across the state. In Akron, the money will go toward implementing a pilot program called FlexRide, a door-to-door, on-demand service to connect workers to jobs in northern Summit County. All totaled, 65 Ohio public transportation systems will be awarded a total of $105 million.