§ 5315 — Private Sector Participation

(a) In the interest of fulfilling the general purposes of this chapter under section 5301(b), the Secretary shall— (1) better coordinate public and private sector-provided public transportation services; (2) promote more effective utilization of private sector expertise, financing, and operational capacity to deliver costly and complex new fixed guideway capital projects; and (3) promote transparency and public understanding of public-private partnerships affecting public transportation. (b) The Secretary shall— (1) provide technical assistance to recipients of Federal transit grant assistance, at the request of a recipient, on practices and methods to best utilize private providers of public transportation; and (2) educate recipients of Federal transit grant assistance on laws and regulations under this chapter that impact private providers of public transportation. (c) Upon request by a sponsor of a new fixed guideway capital project, the Secretary shall— (1) identify best practices for public-private partnerships models in the United States and in other countries; (2) develop standard public-private partnership transaction model contracts; and (3) perform financial assessments that include the calculation of public and private benefits of a proposed public-private partnership transaction. (d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to alter— (1) the eligibilities, requirements, or priorities for assistance provided under this chapter; or (2) the requirements of section 5306(a).