CAGTC: More than half of TIGER IX awarded to freight

More than $275 million of recently announced federal grants issued under the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program were awarded to freight projects or those with a strong freight component, according to the Coalition for America's Gateways & Trade Corridors (CAGTC).

The freight-related awards represent 56 percent of total dollars awarded under the ninth round of TIGER grants, setting a new record, CAGTC officials said in a press release.

The U.S. Department of Transportation last week announced 41 recipients of nearly $500 million in discretionary grant funding for road, transit, maritime and rail projects through the TIGER program.

"Investment in goods movement infrastructure is an economic multiplier," said CAGTC Chairman Tim Lovain. "The multimodal freight network directly supports 44 million U.S. jobs and the indirect benefits extend to every corner of our national economy."

Funding requests from the 452 applications for TIGER IX totaled $6.15 billion, more than 12 times the $487 million made available for the program, according to CAGTC. The high number of requests indicates the need for federal investment that supports freight infrastructure, association officials said.

The 56 percent of freight-related funding more than doubles the amount issued for freight projects under TIGER VIII, they said.