Wisconsin awards grant funding for rail spur at Komatsu plant

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) has announced two Transportation Economic Assistance (TEA) grants totaling $1.7 million to support needed rail and road improvements for the new Milwaukee manufacturing facility and headquarters of Komatsu Mining Corp.

One grant supports the construction of a railroad spur to provide rail access to Komatsu’s $300 million manufacturing and headquarters. The $2.4 million spur, which will connect the Komatsu facility to Union Pacific Railroad and Canadian Pacific lines, will be funded in part by a $1 million TEA grant, according to a WisDOT press release.

A separate $731,000 grant will support the $1.46 million reconstruction of a road section to allow large trucks to safely access the Komatsu site.

This type of rail and road access is consistent with the transportation infrastructure requirements of a heavy manufacturing operation of this scale, WisDOT officials said.