SAN ANTONIO – Bexar County Commissioners agreed Tuesday to set aside $100 million for an East-West rapid transit route through downtown San Antonio.

County and transit officials say it’s needed to lock in federal funding for the $289 million project.

VIA Metropolitan Transit plans to build a pair of advanced rapid transit lines — essentially buses running in dedicated lanes. Both projects rely on federal funding, which requires a local match.

VIA officials said they already have funding in place for the $446.3 million “Rapid Green Line” running North-South along San Pedro Avenue, St. Mary’s Street, and Roosevelt Avenue.

The county money, which comes from a pot of sales tax dollars earmarked for transportation projects, will provide the local match for the “Rapid Silver Line” planned for Houston and Commerce Streets.

Though maps show the Green Line extending from the airport to just past U.S. Highway 90 and the Silver Line from General McMullen Avenue to the Frost Bank Center, a VIA spokesman said those are the areas with capital improvements. The actual routes will extend farther out in each direction.

VIA and the City of San Antonio are also kicking in money for the Silver Line project, but VIA CEO Jeffrey Arndt said it would not be funded without the county’s contribution.

“The (County Judge Peter Sakai) cosigned a letter with the mayor over a year ago that we put in our original submission so we could show that we were moving toward funding,” he told reporters. “And therefore, the (Federal Transit Administration) was willing to kind of accept the project and rate it, but we would never cross the finish line, and we wouldn’t receive any federal funding unless we had shored up that gap.”

Commissioners also approved another $2 million to pay for free tickets on both lines in the first year they open. However, construction on the Green Line isn’t expected to start until next year, and the Silver Line is still in the planning stage.

The Green Line could open in late 2027 or early 2028, Arndt said, with the Silver Line opening about two years later.

The final vote on funding was 3-1-1, with Precinct 3 Commissioner Grant Moody voting against it and Precinct 4 Commissioner Tommy Calvert abstaining.

You can watch Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai’s news conference in the video player below: