Innovative and Impactful Projects Recognized During ARTBA’s 38th Annual P3s in Transportation Event

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - The innovative overhaul of a century-old bus facility and a major improvement to a heavily-traveled corridor took top honors July 15 at the American Road & Transportation Builders Association's (ARTBA) 38th Annual Public-Private Partnerships (P3s) in Transportation Conference. The "P3 Projects of the Year" for 2026 were presented in two categories:

Project of the Year - Innovation

This award spotlights an idea within a P3 project that demonstrates how innovation helps provide value for users.

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA)-Potrero Yard Modernization Project

SFMTA's Potrero Yard Modernization Project is transforming a 1915-era bus facility into a state-of-the-art, four-story maintenance and storage center designed to support the city's growing transit needs and transition to a fully zero-emission bus fleet by 2035. The project addresses critical operational, safety, and sustainability challenges by expanding capacity for 68 percent more buses, improving maintenance efficiency, enhancing fleet reliability, and creating safer, more modern working conditions for 800 employees.

What sets the project apart is its innovative financing and delivery structure. The approximately $620 million project reached financial close in April 2026 and will be delivered through a Design-Build-Finance (DBF) model that utilizes a novel 501(c)(3) financing approach. Tax-exempt bonds issued by the California Municipal Finance Authority are supported solely through appropriations, without any revenue pledge, providing a creative solution to affordability and implementation challenges.

Beyond modernizing transit infrastructure, the project is expected to deliver lasting community benefits by improving service reliability, reducing air and noise pollution, and facilitating better neighborhoods for San Francisco residents.

Project of the Year - Community Impact

This award recognizes a project that provides economic, philanthropic, or humanitarian benefit to the public and an improved quality of life for the community and/or users of the asset. 

495 NEXT / McLean, Va.

The 495 Express Lanes Northern Extension project, known as 495 NEXT, is a $660 million transportation improvement that demonstrates the power of a modern public-private partnership to deliver lasting community benefits. Completed through a user-funded revenue concession P3 model, the project is a partnership between the Commonwealth of Virginia and Transurban that extended the 495 Express Lanes by 2.5 miles along one of the nation's busiest corridors, addressing a longstanding bottleneck on the Capital Beltway.

Opened nine days ahead of schedule in November 2025, the project improves travel reliability for commuters and businesses while reducing congestion on local roads that have long experienced cut-through traffic. The extension provides travelers with new options for faster, more predictable trips and strengthens regional connectivity throughout the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

Beyond improving mobility, 495 NEXT delivers significant community benefits through expanded transit, environmental stewardship, and multimodal infrastructure. The project supports a new bus service operating between major employment and activity centers in Virginia and Maryland, creating an additional, accessible transportation option for commuters. It also includes a new shared-use path connecting to regional trail systems, upgraded local bridges and noise walls, modern stormwater management facilities, and extensive stream restoration work at Scott's Run Park.

Together, these investments are enhancing mobility, accessibility, environmental sustainability, and quality of life for residents across Northern Virginia and the greater Washington region.

About ARTBA
ARTBA brings together all facets of the transportation construction industry to responsibly advocate for infrastructure investment and policy that meet the nation's need for the safe and efficient movement of people and goods.