Washington, D.C. - Wyoming's Congressional Delegation announced today a Federal Transit Administration grant that will address the transportation needs of three Wyoming communities.

U.S. Senators Craig Thomas and Mike Enzi and Representative Barbara Cubin, all R-Wyo., said the Wyoming Department of Transportation is set to receive approximately $655,000 for bus transportation projects in Torrington, Laramie and at the University of Wyoming.

The Goshen Friendship Center in Torrington is set to receive about $200,000 to rehabilitate an existing building for use as a bus storage facility. A parking lot for community use will also be funded by the grant.

The Epson Senior Center in Laramie will receive nearly $150,000 to build a new facility for bus storage and maintenance of their vehicles.

The University of Wyoming will use a grant of about $305,000 to construct a "park and ride" lot on the east end of the campus by War Memorial Stadium. The funding will also be used for the construction of bus stop shelters, lighting and an additional fee-for-parking area behind the Wyoming Student Union.

Funding for the projects comes from a fiscal year 2002 Transportation Appropriation of about $3 million for bus allocations secured by the delegation. Federal funding for the programs will be matched by 20 percent with local funding. Nearly $2.3 million remains for other bus transportation projects in 2003 and 2004.