Pennsylvania awards $42.5 million to fund freight-rail improvements

Pennsylvania's State Transportation Commission has approved $42.5 million in funding for 25 freight-rail improvement projects through the Rail Transportation Assistance and the Rail Freight Assistance programs.

The funding will be awarded to projects that are designed to expand freight mobility throughout 23 counties, said Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Secretary Mike Carroll in a press release.

Among the railroads and businesses that will receive funding are:
• 25 Caster Way Owner LLC, $7.6 million, to construct the Berks Waste and Rail Transfer Station, which includes rail infrastructure and loading equipment;
• Eddystone Marine and Rail Terminal Co., $5 million, to rehabilitate rail infrastructure on the loop track and construct 20 unloading car spots;
• Allegheny Valley Railroad, $4.3 million, to construct three yard tracks at Verona Yard using repurposed rail from the Brilliant Branch;
• R.J. Corman Railroad Co. Pennsylvania lines, $3 million, to rehabilitate 20 miles of track on the Cherry Tree Subdivision and Cresson Subdivision with spot tie replacement and surfacing;
• Union Railroad, $2.1 million, to replace 15,000 ties in the classification and North Bessemer Yards;
• Franklin Storage, $2.1 million, to construct 1,700 feet of track, a turnout and unloading dock for a new 360,000 square foot rail-served warehouse;
• Lehigh Valley Rail Management LLC, $1.8 million, to rehabilitate 860 feet of track and construct 3,500 feet of track in the Iron Hill Transload Yard;
• York Railway, $1.6 million, to rehabilitate track in the Lincoln Yard with rail and tie replacement and track surfacing;
• Cleveland-Cliffs Steelton, $1.4 million, to rehabilitate multiple tracks by replacing ties and rail to improve safety and efficiency on the Steelton & Highspire Railroad.
• Cleveland-Cliffs–Brandywine Valley Railroad, $1.2 million, to rehabilitate tracks and a rail scale in the Ritchey Yard; and
• Delaware-Lackawanna Railroad: $1.1 million to rehabilitate three bridges and a culvert on the Pocono Mainline.

To view the full list of awards, click here.