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By Monday’s deadline, 24 states, the District of Columbia and Amtrak submitted a total of 90 applications seeking portions of $2.4 billion in federal high-speed rail grants redirected from Florida, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a prepared statement issued today.

The preliminary total of the applications’ value is $10 billion, more than four times the amount available — an indication that there is high demand for high-speed rail, LaHood said.

“Since I announced the availability of an additional $2.4 billion for high-speed rail projects, governors and members of Congress have been clamoring for the opportunity to participate,” he said. “That’s because they know that high-speed rail will deliver tens of thousands of jobs, spur economic development across their communities and create additional options for their citizens as the country’s population grows.”

LaHood announced last month that the grant money Florida had rejected would be reopened for grant proposals until April 4. Now, the Federal Railroad Administration will begin reviewing the applications to determine recipients based on projects deemed to “quickly deliver” public and economic benefits.

“A project’s ability to reduce energy consumption, improve the efficiency of a region’s overall transportation network and generate sustained economic activity along the corridor are among the selection criteria,” according to the USDOT.

Amtrak submitted applications for projects in the Northeast Corridor. In addition, the District of Columbia and the following states applied: California, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.