This idea is beyond my expertise, but I will say that SF gets a lot of money from the feds already for transportation projects. Applications are driven by SFMTA staff, and they have a lot of success (such as small starts grants) because the SFMTA matches many of the goals the Department of Transportation wants, such as reducing dependency on cars and reducing green house gasses.
As an aside, one grant that the SFMTA didn't get, but you might think is a shoe-in, was the Smart Cities grant (http://smartcitysf.com/). This would have created a program to increase cycling by innovating around car and bus automation. With the saved space from the eliminated parking, the city could convert those areas to housing, community centers and parks.
SF lost the grant and the funds went to Columbus, Ohio. The videos of the presentations are online if you search for them.
As an aside, one grant that the SFMTA didn't get, but you might think is a shoe-in, was the Smart Cities grant (http://smartcitysf.com/). This would have created a program to increase cycling by innovating around car and bus automation. With the saved space from the eliminated parking, the city could convert those areas to housing, community centers and parks.
SF lost the grant and the funds went to Columbus, Ohio. The videos of the presentations are online if you search for them.