Chris Lisinski | Telegram & Gazette

“The roughly $1 billion the state is set to receive in federal public transit emergency aid will be a ‘lifeline’ to keep agencies rattled by the coronavirus pandemic afloat during uncertain months, advocates say.

A $2 trillion coronavirus relief package President Donald Trump signed Friday includes $25 billion in grants for mass transit, about $1 billion of which will be directed to Massachusetts using existing formulas, according to one lawmaker and an outside expert.

While the exact allocation of those funds between the MBTA and the state's 15 regional transit authorities remains unclear, transportation insiders say it will serve as a crucial injection for systems that have seen ridership plummet and a range of new costs for safety precautions.”