USDOT awards $2.2 billion in RAISE grants for infrastructure projects

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg yesterday announced the award of more than $2.2 billion in federal grants to help fund 162 infrastructure projects across the nation.

Issued through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program, the grant funding includes at least 15 projects with rail elements.

Expanded under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the RAISE program supports communities of all sizes, with half of the fiscal-year 2023 funding going to rural areas and the other half to urban areas, U.S. Department of Transportation officials said in a press release.

Ten of the projects involve funding for projects that address grade crossings. One grant was awarded to a short line: The Hoosier Southern Railroad will receive $11,575,000 to upgrade 14 miles of 75-pound rail to 115-pound rail. The railroad is part of the Perry County Port Authority in Indiana.

Other rail-related projects and their grant awards include:

• $25 million for the Tonnelle Avenue Bridge and utility relocation project in North Bergen, New Jersey. The project involves constructing a 100-foot road bridge to carry Tonnelle Avenue over a new railroad right-of-way in preparation for the new Hudson River Tunnel;

• $25 million to the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority for the final design and construction of two intercity passenger-rail stations and associated facilities in Hesperia and Victor Valley on the Brightline West high-speed rail corridor;

•$24.5 million to the Utah Department of Transportation for construction of infrastructure at 10 light-rail stops and 13 bus stops in the Wasatch Front area;

• $21.5 million for the Palomar Street grade separation in Chula Vista, California. The project will eliminate a crossing that causes frequent delays for drivers and has been the site of 85 crashes over a 10-year period;

• $20 million to the California High-Speed Rail Authority to renovate and modernize the Fresno High-Speed Rail Station. The project also will provide electric vehicle charging infrastructure and space for future transit charging in anticipation of the future California high-speed rail multimodal station; and

• $9.5 million to the city of Blaine, Washington, for a project to complete part of the design, environmental compliance and right-of-way acquisition for the replacement of a crossing on BNSF Railway Co.'s Bellingham Subdivision mainline at Bell Road.