ClosedOpportunity FTA-2026-004-TRI

FY26 Bus Safety, Accessibility, and Innovation Notice of Funding Opportunity

DOT - Federal Transit Administration · Department of Transportation

At a glance

FY26 Bus Safety, Accessibility, and Innovation Notice of Funding Opportunity is a closed federal cooperative agreement opportunity from DOT - Federal Transit Administration (Department of Transportation). The application deadline was September 28, 2026. Individual awards are listed as up to $10M, with about 2 awards expected and $10M in total estimated funding. Applicant types listed as eligible include state governments, county governments, city or township governments, public colleges & universities, federally recognized tribal governments and 6 more. Cost sharing or matching is required. It is funded under Assistance Listing 20.530 (Public Transportation Innovation).

Summary assembled from the official notice's fields. The official notice governs.

Key facts

Jul 29, 2026Posted
Sep 28, 2026Application deadline
Oct 28, 2026Archivednext date

Posted: Jul 29, 2026
Close date: Sep 28, 2026
Archive date: Oct 28, 2026
Award floor: Not specified
Award ceiling: $10,000,000
Est. total funding: $10,000,000
Expected awards: 2
Cost sharing: Required
Funding instrument: Cooperative Agreement
Opportunity category: Discretionary

Who can apply

State governments
County governments
City or township governments
Public colleges & universities
Federally recognized tribal governments
501(c)(3) nonprofits
Private colleges & universities
Individuals
For-profit organizations (not small businesses)
Small businesses
Others (see notice)

Additional information on eligibility (from the notice)

To be eligible, applicants must have sufficient legal, financial, and technical capabilities to receive and administer Federal funds under this program. Teams must include a TVM in a prominent role.

Can your organization apply?

A quick check against the listed applicant types — other requirements in the notice still apply.

Based on the published notice. Review the official notice for complete eligibility requirements.

What it funds

Official synopsis as published by the agency, formatted for readability.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the opportunity to apply for competitive awards totaling up to $10 million in Public Transportation Innovation Program (49 U.S.C. 5312) funds for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Bus Safety, Accessibility, and Innovation Research Program under Assistance Listing Number 20.530. As required by Federal public transportation law, funds will be awarded competitively to up to two projects to develop and prototype innovative and widely deployable concepts that are intended to make existing and new buses safer for their operators and vulnerable road users, and safer and more accessible for their passengers.

Additional information from the agency ↗

Full announcement & documents

The full announcement has the complete rules — page limits, required attachments, evaluation criteria and any letter-of-intent dates. Files download directly from Grants.gov.

Assistance Listing

What is an ALN?

20.530Public Transportation InnovationProgram →

Reported obligations under ALN 20.530

Historical data · not a prediction

FY24

$51.8M

FY25

$9.05M

FY26

$29.2M est.

Source: SAM.gov Assistance Listing 20.530. Program-wide totals, not awards from this specific opportunity.

Who was funded under ALN 20.530

Historical data · not a prediction

Since October 1, 2023, 123 grant awards had funding actions under Public Transportation Innovation, with 20 sub-awards passed on to other organizations. These are program-wide awards, not awards from this specific notice.

NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES$21.1M
REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA$10.5M
CENTER FOR TRANSPORTATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT, INC.$8.99M
CALSTART, INC.$8.99M
CINCINNATI UNIV OF$8.74M

Recipients, states, recent awards and sub-awards →Source: USAspending.gov.

Agency contact (as published)

Johnita S Glover Transportation Program Analyst
marcel.belanger@dot.gov
202-366-9833

Quick answers

Who is eligible to apply for “FY26 Bus Safety, Accessibility, and Innovation Notice of Funding Opportunity”?

The official notice names these applicant types as eligible: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Public colleges & universities, Federally recognized tribal governments, 501(c)(3) nonprofits, Private colleges & universities, Individuals, For-profit organizations (not small businesses), Small businesses and Others (see notice). Additional restrictions may apply; review the full notice.

How much funding is available through “FY26 Bus Safety, Accessibility, and Innovation Notice of Funding Opportunity”?

Per the notice, individual awards are listed as up to $10m, total estimated program funding is $10,000,000 and the agency expects to make about 2 awards.

How do I apply for “FY26 Bus Safety, Accessibility, and Innovation Notice of Funding Opportunity”?

Applications are submitted through the official source, not through GrantsJunction. Open the official notice on Grants.gov (opportunity FTA-2026-004-TRI), and review the full announcement and application package. Organizations applying through Grants.gov generally need an active SAM.gov registration and a Grants.gov account, which can take several weeks to set up.

Matched on shared Assistance Listings, agency, categories and eligible applicant types.

OpenResearchALN 20.108