Federal Transit Administration

1960s

On June 30, 1961, President John F. Kennedy, recognizing the social and environmental implications of existing transportation policy, signed the Omnibus Housing Act, which, among other things, stated that mass transit is “a distinctly urban problem and one of the key factors in shaping community development.” Originally seen as a form of demonstration project to test whether there could be a worthwhile federal role in shaping and funding transit policy at the local metropolitan level, this act created an urban transit assistance program and placed it under the supervision of the U.S. Housing and Home Finance Administration (now known as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development). The 1961 Omnibus Act provided $25 million for grants and $50 million for loans for pilot projects in mass transit, largely seen as a way to create transportation options for those too poor, young, old, or disabled to drive private vehicles.

President Kennedy continued to advocate a larger federal role in funding and shaping local transit policy because of its social implications. In 1962, President Kennedy's secretary of commerce and the housing and home finance administrator sent a letter to Congress advocating a “balanced” transportation system—one that did not overemphasize car ownership to the detriment of public transportation—that could assist communities in land use planning, mitigation of traffic congestion, and provision of mobility options for nondrivers. The letter cited a decades-long cycle of service cuts and fare increases, which reduced the ability of transit agencies to provide services to low-income communities. The letter was seen as a significant lobbying effort to create new and continued programs of grants and loans for transit agencies.

President Kennedy, in a subsequent statement to Congress, said the following: