Bicycle & Pedestrian Funding
A new program promoting bicycle and pedestrian trails arrived with the passage of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). The Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program was established to provide funding to projects that encourage school-aged children to walk or bicycle to school. Interested governments are not required to provide any match; the program provides 100 percent of the funding.
The Iowa Department of Transportation offers funding through the State Recreational Trails Program, which provides funding for public recreation trails. This program is offered to state agencies, counties, cities, and non-profit organizations. Sponsors are required to provide one-fourth of the project funding, must guarantee trail maintenance for twenty years, and projects must be part of a local, area-wide, regional, or statewide trail plan.
The Federal Recreational Trails Program provides capital support to maintain motorized and non-motorized trails and trail-related projects. Applicants may include public agencies, non-profit organizations, and private organizations; however, private organizations must co-sponsor projects with public agencies. Project sponsors are required to supply a 20 percent match and guarantee the trail will be maintained for twenty years.
The Federal Transportation Enhancement Program grants funds for the improvement or the conservation of transportation-related projects, including trails, bikeways, historical, archeological, scenic, and environmental. Public agencies and non-profit organizations are eligible. Private organizations may apply if they co-sponsor a project with a public agency. These projects must relate to existing or planner surface transportation facilities. The Iowa Department of Transportation requires a 30 percent match for statewide enhancement projects and a 20 percent match for regional enhancement projects. This program has an annual funding level of approximately $9 million.