The American Public Transportation Association today gave Inouye the 2013 Distinguished Service Award at the group’s annual meeting in Chicago.

He was chosen for the award because of his influence in securing $1.55 billion in federal grant funding for Honolulu’s $5.26 billion rail project.

The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation issued a press release about the award, which was accepted by Inouye’s former chief of staff Jeniffer Sabas, Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell and HART Executive Director and CEO Dan Grabauskas.

Here’s what the APTA awards committee had to say when it nominated Inouye for the Distinguished Service Award:

“He worked to build critical roads, modernized airports, expanded bus service, obtained infrastructure funding and most recently with the Obama administration and Federal Transit Administration to secure federal fudning for the Honolulu rail transit project.”

Inouye died Dec. 17, 2012. Two days later the the FTA and city signed a full funding grant agreement that officially gave $1.55 billion to the rail project.

Photo: Accepting the APTA 2013 Distinguished Service Award, from left to right, are HART Executive Director and CEO Dan Grabauskas, Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell and Inouye’s former chief of staff Jennifer Sabas. The award was presented by Chris Boylan, far right, of the General Contractors Association of New York. (Photo courtesy of HART)

—Nick Grube