Posted on October 23, 2024
Funding from USDOT’s INFRA and Mega grant programs are helping build complex, ambitious projects across the country that improve safety, mobility, and economic competitiveness
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced more than $4.2 billion in funding from the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda through two major discretionary grant programs, the National Infrastructure Project Assistance (Mega) grant program and the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant program, both of which have historic levels of funding thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
A total of 44 projects were selected in this round of funding, including projects that improve safety, mobility, and economic competitiveness, constructing major bridges, expanding port capacity, redesigning interchanges, and more. Three projects – in Phoenix, AZ, Chicago, IL, and Providence, RI – received awards from both programs, following through on the Department’s commitment to invest in non-traditional, multimodal projects that have been challenging to fully fund with limited resources in the past.
“Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Biden-Harris administration is carrying out ambitious, complex transportation projects that will shape our country’s infrastructure for generations to come,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “With this latest round of awards, dozens of major and much-needed projects – projects that are often difficult to fund through other means – are getting the long-awaited investments they need to move forward.”
Since the start of the Biden-Harris Administration, nearly $12.8 billion in funding through the INFRA and Mega programs has been announced for 140 projects across 42 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico, including approximately:
- 35 large bridge projects
- 18 large port projects
- 20 rail projects
- 85 highway improvement projects
Approximately 53% of projects that have received funding to date are in rural communities, and about 42% of projects are located in disadvantaged communities, delivering on President Biden’s Justice40 commitment.
In today’s round of selections for the Mega program, the Biden-Harris Administration is investing $1.68 billion into 11 projects that will generate national and regional economic, mobility, and safety benefits while creating U.S. jobs and lowering costs for consumers.
Selected Mega projects this round include:
- $472.3 million to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority for the North Station Renovation and Draw 1 Bridge Replacement project in Boston, Massachusetts. The project will replace Draw 1 – a 92-year-old bridge that links Amtrak’s Downeaster intercity passenger rail (IPR) service and four separate MBTA regional rail lines to North Station – as well as extend and activate a two-track platform at North Station and replace track, signals, and switches throughout the project area. Despite the poor condition of the bridge, Draw 1 functions as the primary portal for over 1,100 passenger trains each week into North Station, the fifth-largest transit station in the New England region. These trains are routinely subjected to delays attributable to project components, with 165 unique delay events between 2019 and 2021, and an average operational lag of 24.7 minutes. As regional rail ridership continues to grow, this project is critical to preserving and expanding future service in the Northeast.
- $217.2 million to the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority for the SouthPort Berth Phase 2: Capacity and Resilient Growth Optimization (CARGO) project in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The project will increase resiliency and expand operational capacity at the Southport terminal by providing approximately ten additional acres adjacent to the Phase 1 berth development and adding a second berth downriver. PhilaPort, recognized as the fastest-growing port on the East Coast, will achieve cost-savings efficiencies from an improved terminal layout and will be more competitive as the project will provide capacity for additional roll-on/roll-off cargo.
- $68.6 million to the Iowa Department of Transportation for the Southwest Mixmaster Interchange Reconstruction project in Des Moines, Iowa. The project will reconstruct the existing I-35/80/235 interchange, which was constructed in the 1960s and is considered one of the most dangerous in the state. The interchange was built to handle 1,000 vehicles an hour – today, it carries an estimated 1,500 vehicles per hour and is expected to grow to 2,000 per hour by 2050. The reconstruction, which includes new flyover bridges from southbound I-35/80 to eastbound I-235 and to westbound I-80, will improve the safety and reliability of travel for people and freight through the region.
In today’s round of selections for the INFRA program, for which funding was increased more than 50% by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Biden-Harris Administration is investing $2.58 billion into 36 projects that will improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of the movement of freight and people in and across rural and urban communities.
Selected INFRA projects this round include:
- $196 million to the Michigan Department of Transportation for the River Raisin Bridge and Interstate 75 Revitalization project in Monroe County, Michigan. The project will replace the deteriorating River Raisin Bridge along I-75 with a new crossing to accommodate estimated future traffic, update and replace six existing structures – including two bridges over class I railroad lines – with new ones designed for a100-year lifespan, and reconstruct over two miles of roadway to improve safety and the efficiency of freight movement along this vital U.S.-Canada trade corridor. The I-75 River Raisin Bridge serves as a vital connection point between Detroit and Toledo and currently serves approximately 61,000 vehicles daily, with 25% being truck traffic.
- $86.6 million to the Mississippi Department of Transportation for the Improvements to the I-20/I-55 Freight Corridor project in Jackson, Mississippi. The project will update seven bridge structures to meet modern design standards, repair an additional 19 bridge structures, deploy Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) equipment, and resurface approximately 32 miles of roadway to enhance the movement of goods and people and reduce the number of fatal and injury crashes on this critical corridor. The excessively rough road surfaces in the project area cause significant travel delays for both trucks and cars, and the segment of I-55 between US Highway 49 and Pearson Road was identified in 2022 as the 6th worst freight bottleneck in the state.
- $66.5 million to the Florida Department of Transportation for the U.S. 1/SR 5 Long Key Bridge Replacement project in Monroe County, Florida. The project will replace the current Long Key Bridge built in 1982. US 1 is the only roadway linkage across the Florida Keys for 113 miles between the mainland and Key West and is a critical emergency evacuation route for the Florida Keys. Additionally, freight movement over the Long Key Bridge is a lifeline supporting the Florida Keys economy – more than 134,000 trucks carrying an estimated $2 billion in freight cross the bridge each year. This replacement project is critical to the 72,000 people and hundreds of businesses located south of the bridge.
View the full list of Mega awards HERE and INFRA awards HERE.
Applications opened in March under a joint notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for this year’s $5.1 billion Multimodal Discretionary Grant Program, or MPDG, which allows applicants to submit one application for consideration under the Mega, INFRA, and Rural grant programs.
As with last year’s awards, despite these historic increases in funding, these programs were significantly oversubscribed. The Department received approximately 200 INFRA and Mega applications requesting more than $27 billion in funding, far exceeding the amount of funding available.
Applications for the MPDG grants were evaluated based on the criteria published in the NOFO. The criteria included safety; state of good repair; economic impacts, freight movements and job creation; climate change, resilience, and the environment; equity, multimodal options and quality of life; and innovation areas such as technology, project delivery, and financing. The Department also considered cost effectiveness, project readiness, and certain statutory requirements related to funding and design in evaluating the MPDG applications received. Rural Surface Transportation grant applications are still under evaluation, and the Department anticipates announcing selections by January 2025.
More information about the Mega, INFRA, and Rural programs can be found here.
