Maryland seeks federal grant to fund Howard Street Tunnel project

Maryland state officials applied for a federal Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant to help fund the rebuilding of the Howard Street rail tunnel in Baltimore, Gov. Larry Hogan announced yesterday.

The governor's announcement and grant application to the U.S. Department of Transportation follows his administration's year-long negotiations with CSX to restore the state and CSX partnership to rebuild the tunnel, state officials said in a press release.

"This is an essential project for the Port of Baltimore, state of Maryland, and the entire East Coast," said Hogan. "Reconstructing the Howard Street Tunnel will create thousands of jobs, open up new trade lanes for the Port, and improve overall freight rail service across our nation."

The long-planned tunnel reconstruction and clearance project would eliminate height restrictions to enable double-stacked intermodal trains to move to and from the Port of Baltimore. Baltimore and port officials have said the project is central to the port's future and the region's economy.

Railroad officials appeared to "walk away" from the proposal about a year ago, and are now willing to commit $91 million toward the tunnel project's cost. The CSX commitment to the project was agreed to during a meeting late last year between CSX President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Foote and the Maryland congressional delegation. The meeting occurred about a year after Foote met with the delegation to review CSX's initial decision to pull out of the project.

"CSX is pleased to partner with Gov. Hogan and the state of Maryland on the Howard Street Tunnel project to help improve our nation's freight transportation system, maximize freight rail capacity, and increase intermodal connectivity between the northeastern and southeastern United States," said Foote in the state's press release.

The project is estimated to cost $466 million, with the state funding $147 million toward the project. The INFRA grant application is seeking $228 million in federal funds.