$200 million federal grant in the works to use public buses at 2028 Olympics

An initial $200 million federal grant is in the works to assist the Southland in establishing a bus leasing program and bolster infrastructure in preparation of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla announced on Friday, July 26.

The funding is outlined as part of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2025 — recently approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee. The bill is expected to be reconciled with the U.S. House of Representatives version before being finalized and able to be enacted, Padilla’s office said in a statement.

Padilla, D-California, is in Paris this week for the opening ceremony of the Olympic and Paralympic Games as part of a presidential delegation, which includes Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and members of the LA2028 organizing committee.

“With the Olympic and Paralympic Games headed to Los Angeles in just four short years, we must continue making critical investments in planning and preparing our transportation infrastructure,” Padilla said in the statement.

The senator expressed his gratitude toward the Senate Appropriations Committee for including his request for funding to support a regional transportation management system needed to make the Games run smoothly for athletes, visitors and Angelenos.

“The 2028 Games are a tremendous opportunity to showcase the United States on the world stage, but Los Angeles cannot do it alone,” the statement said. “Partnerships between the federal government, local transit agencies and everyone on the ground in Los Angeles are crucial to making the Games a success.”

The bus leasing program is expected to build on the model used in Atlanta in 1996 and Salt Lake City in 2002. It will facilitate the donation or leasing of buses or bus operators from public transit agencies throughout the United States to Los Angeles public transit agencies and the L.A. committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games 2028.

The committee also directed the U.S. Department of Transportation to expedite technical assistance and to help provide federal resources, funding, approvals and waivers in a timely manner to help prepare for the Los Angeles Olympics and the 2026 World Cup, which will feature matches in the L.A. region and the San Francisco Bay Area.

The Appropriations Committee directed the Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg to report on the full scope of the department’s transportation infrastructure obligations and the host locations’ projected resource needs from fiscal year 2026 through fiscal year 2029.