© 2025 Texas Public Radio
Real. Reliable. Texas Public Radio.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

VIA lands federal grant to fully fund rapid transit corridor from the airport to the Missions

Mayor Ron Nirenberg announcing the federal funding for VIA Metropolitan's Green Line Advanced Rapid Transit project.
Josh Peck
/
TPR
Mayor Ron Nirenberg announcing the federal funding for VIA Metropolitan's Green Line Advanced Rapid Transit project.

VIA Metropolitan Transit is receiving a $268 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to support its Green Line Advanced Rapid Transit project, city, county, VIA, and federal officials announced on Wednesday.

The grant means the project — a rapid transit corridor stretching from the San Antonio International Airport through downtown and to the Mission Reach — is now fully funded.

The federal government’s contributions make up the majority of funding from the project, but FTA Deputy Administrator Veronica Vanterpool said it didn’t happen in a vacuum.

“Yeah, we come in with the big bucks, but we can't bring our dollars unless you all are making a decision and a choice to support these projects as well,” she said.

San Antonio voters approved an eighth-of-a-cent sales tax in 2020 that has contributed $154 million to the $481 million project.

The Green Line Advanced Rapid Transit corridor map.
Courtesy of
/
VIA Metropolitan Transit
The Green Line Advanced Rapid Transit corridor map.

VIA’s Green Line will run through downtown on San Pedro Avenue and will offer fast service to the nearly 54,000 residents and more than 100,000 jobs along it.

It will utilize dedicated bus-only lanes and synchronized signals to separate bus traffic from other vehicles and keep those buses moving quickly.

Construction on the Green Line will begin in 2025, and service is scheduled to begin in late 2027 or early 2028.

Mayor Ron Nirenberg said the Green Line is intended to improve all of San Antonio. “We are working tirelessly now towards a common goal, and that is not just to build a mass transit system, it's to uplift the community that we love and we serve,” he said.

The full plan for the corridor, including station design and location details and a phased construction timeline, will be finalized next year.

Federal Transit Administration Deputy Administrator Veronica Vanterpool announcing new federal funding for VIA's Green Line Advanced Rapid Transit project.
Josh Peck
/
Texas Public Radio
Federal Transit Administration Deputy Administrator Veronica Vanterpool announcing new federal funding for VIA's Green Line Advanced Rapid Transit project.

The Green Line will come with 26 new bus stations, 151 new or replaced stormwater drains and other drainage improvements, more than seven miles of new or repaired sidewalks, 13 new signalized pedestrian crossings, and 39 upgraded synchronized traffic signals, according to the current design plan.

In a press release, VIA said it would handle construction in stages to minimize disruption and promised that “customers will continue to have access to businesses during construction.”

County Judge Peter Sakai said the line was something businesses that will be near it should look forward to. “It will be a win for economic development as new opportunities arise for business owners, large and small, who want to be part of this new connector,” he added.

VIA plans to follow the Green Line’s completion in 2027 with the Silver Line, which would run from east to west from the Frost Bank Center to North General McMullen Drive. Construction for that line is scheduled to begin in 2027 and finish in 2029.

TPR was founded by and is supported by our community. If you value our commitment to the highest standards of responsible journalism and are able to do so, please consider making your gift of support today.