(MSC News)--The Northeast Kansas Area Agency on Aging is among the recipients of 33 statewide transit project grants totaling more than $7.4 million.

According to a news release from the Kansas Department of Transportation, the grants are allocated through KDOT's new Access, Innovation and Collaboration Program, and were announced recently.

The Northeast Kansas Area Agency on Aging was awarded three grants totaling nearly $1.2 million. They include more than one million dollars for a multi-use transit/aging facility, just over $66,000 for an all-wheel drive transit vehicle and nearly $13,000 for vehicle security cameras.

Area Agency on Aging Executive Director Karen Wilson told MSC News the multi-use transit/aging facility will allow the agency to construct a new building in Hiawatha to house the offices of the Northeast Kansas Area Agency on Aging along with a new transit facility for the general public transportation program the agency provides.

Wilson said the early plans also include a meal site, a community center, and some multi-use space.  She said planning is still in the very early process, and plans will be finalized as the project moves forward. 

Wilson added that the vehicle security cameras will be installed in each of the agency’s vehicles for the security of the riders and drivers, while the all-wheel drive transit vehicle will allow the agency to increase its fleet and be better equipped to handle some of the rural roads. She said more than 80 percent of the roads in the area served by the agency are gravel. 

The Northeast Kansas Area Agency on Aging serves seven counties in northeast Kansas, including Atchison, Brown, Doniphan, Jackson, Marshall, Nemaha and Washington.