Funding for the SURF! Busway project is available from Measure X (up to a total of $15 million).  The current phase of preliminary engineering and environmental analysis budgeted at $1,450,000 of Measure X funds and $100,000 of MST's share of state SB 1 Local Partnership Program funds. Additional matching funds will be needed to fully fund the project, which currently has a total estimated cost of $52 million.

The total cost of construction of the South County Maintenance and Operations Facility is estimated at $14,579,700. MST and TAMC entered a funding agreement to provide $10,359,695 in Measure X Funds to the project under the regional  "Commuter Bus, Salinas Valley Transit Center(s) & Vanpools" project; a total of $25 million in Measure X Investment Plan Funding is identified for this category.  

SURF! Busway and Bus Rapid Transit Project

Identified in Measure X as "Highway 1 Traffic Relief - Busway," the recently renamed SURF! Busway and Bus Rapid Transit project aims to create a new bus-only corridor, paralleling Highway 1 between Monterey and Marina.  The busway would be built within the Monterey Branch Line rail right-of-way owned by the Transportation Agency to provide commuters a traffic-free alternative to Highway 1. The SURF! project was identified in Measure X with the goals of:

• Increasing transit service
• Reducing transit and automobile delay along Highway 1, and
• Improving air quality

In Fall 2019, MST hired Kimley-Horn to conduct the environmental review and preliminary design work, which officially kicked-off on November 21, 2019. Since project initiation, MST and TAMC have been meeting with key stakeholders.  The project has generally received positive feedback. The project team is planning virtual public outreach activities to start later this summer. Video simulations of travel along the corridor are being developed and will be ready within the next two months.  

MST is actively pursuing matching funds to help pay for the project, including coordinating with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to apply for a Capital Investment Grant, a discretionary grant program to support transit capital investments including busways/bus rapid transit systems. The project has been accepted into the Project Development phase of FTA’s Capital Investments Grants program, which is the first step towards obtaining funding.

South County Operations and Maintenance Facility

As part of the Measure X category of "Commuter Bus, Salinas Valley Transit Center(s) & Vanpools," the South County Operations and Maintenance Facility will accommodate existing and future transit needs in Monterey’s South County. This Maintenance and Operations Facility will allow buses currently housed in Salinas and Monterey to be relocated to South County.  The project will increase operating efficiency by reducing deadhead (empty bus) travel time, allowing MST to deploy more transit service throughout South County at minimal extra cost.

MST is pursing a very-low interest loan from the U. S. Department of Transportation to finance this facility. MST has already begun to incur design costs, and expects to incur construction costs, before receipt of the federal loan. Construction on the Facility is anticipated to begin in August 2020, and completion is scheduled for September 2021.

MST and TAMC entered a regional funding agreement in May 2020 to provide up to $10,359,695 for the construction of the facility, with $2,399,695 for construction costs in FY 2020/21 and $7,960,000 for loan repayments (FY 2020 through 2029/30).