USDOT Announces $1.5 Billion in Infrastructure Grants
The availability of grants aimed at advancing major infrastructure projects along commercial and commuter corridors was recently announced by the U.S. Department of Transportation. These funds, provided through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity initiative, have the goal of enhancing nationwide supply chain connectivity, as stated by Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
According to Transport Topics, “We are delivering safer, cleaner infrastructure to communities of every size and in every part of the country, creating a new generation of jobs and helping families build generational wealth in the process,” Buttigieg said.
The notice of funding opportunity issued outlined criteria for applicants. “RAISE grants will be awarded on a competitive basis, per statute, for planning or constructing surface transportation infrastructure projects that will improve safety; environmental sustainability; quality of life; mobility and community connectivity; economic competitiveness and opportunity including tourism; state of good repair; partnership and collaboration; and innovation,” it said.
Last year, RAISE grants assisted 162 infrastructure projects. Among the projects was $10.5 million for the construction of a truck parking facility near the inland Port of Columbia in Louisiana. Per DOT, that project was intended to “increase multimodal freight movement and reduce supply chain bottlenecks, as truck parking is vital to goods movement operations and logistics.”
The department’s infrastructure grants are funding instruments in the infrastructure portfolio of President Joe Biden. As a result of 2021’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the administration has dedicated billions of dollars for large-scale connectivity projects. For example, the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law paved the way for the Federal Transit Administration’s recent announcement of $220.2 million in grants to modernize the nation’s ferry system.
