As part of the U.S. Department of Transportation Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) grant program, nearly $14 million in federal funds are headed for rail transit projects in Washington.
“When we wrote the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, I fought to make sure our state’s transit and rail infrastructure a top priority,” U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) said of the news. “That’s why I’m very glad to see our state’s transit authorities receive critical funding to get people and goods where they need to go and keep our freight moving forward. These federal dollars are going to improve our rail infrastructure in a big way, all while strengthening our economy and creating good-paying jobs. When we invest in transit, we’re investing in our supply chains and getting goods where they need to go.”
CRISI seeks to modernize rail infrastructure throughout the United States by supporting passenger and freight rail projects, reducing congestion, bolstering supply chains, and, in line with Biden administration hopes, working to reduce carbon emissions. Last year, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law nearly tripled the program’s funding to $1 billion a year over the next five years.
The funding provided for Washington will go to two projects, the Pierce County Rail Capacity and Reliability Improvement Project and the Pacific Northwest Rail Corridor Reliability Landslide Mitigation Phase IV Project.
Pierce County will get the bulk of funds – up to $10 million – so that the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority can complete preliminary engineering and environmental review for track and signal improvements as it seeks to increase passenger and freight rail capacity in the Pacific Northwest High Speed Corridor. The remainder of up to $3,837,000 will go to the Washington State Department of Transportation for its Pacific Northwest Rail Corridor project, which aims to reduce blockages caused by landslides. The department will install catchment walls along three locations between Seattle and Everett, Washington, and improve the existing slide fence alert system.