FRA awards CRISI grants to four South Dakota rail projects

The South Dakota Department of Transportation announced last week that four rail projects in the state have been awarded grants under the Federal Railroad Administration's Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Program.

The State Railroad Board approved grant request applications and dollar amounts for the following projects:

• Dakota and Iowa Railroad's mainline replacement and crossing improvement project, $3.99 million;
• Ellis and Eastern Railroad's Sioux Falls area bridges, $3.9 million;
• Belle Fourche Industrial and Rail Park's project to expand rail-car capacity, $1.9 million; and
• Sisseton Milbank Railroad's Lake Farley Bridge replacement, $1.5 million.

The funds were awarded under the CRISI program's Special Transportation Circumstances Grant Program, state transportation officials said in a press release.