Spokane Transit Authority granted $6.3 million from DOT

The Spokane Transit Authority will get $6.3 million in grants from the federal government to promote greener transportation in the city.

U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, said in a news release the money would fund a Low and No Emission Vehicle Grant Program.

The grants, given by the U.S. Department of Transportation, would help the Spokane Transit Authority buy or lease more low- or no-emission public buses, according to the release.

Some of the grant money would support the purchase of 10 battery electric buses and fuel-cell powered cars, according to the release. These 10 buses would replace buses that already reached the end of their useful life.

The grant project is meant to support the replacement of 30 diesel-fueled city buses by 2030.