The U.S. Department of Transportation has earmarked a $24.9 million grant for Lexington, N.C., to build a multimodal passenger rail and bus station in the Depot District.
Sens. Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Richard Burr (R-NC) and Rep. Ted Budd (R-NC) said the Better Utilizing Investment to Leverage Development (BUILD) award would replace the 7th Avenue at-grade rail crossing with a grade-separated rail crossing at 5th Avenue while enabling track improvements between the two components.
“After advocating on behalf of Lexington, I am proud we could secure these funds to construct a rail and bus station in Lexington’s Depot District and make much-needed improvements downtown,” Tillis said.
Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao said the BUILD grants would repair, rebuild and revitalize transportation systems nationwide.
“This award will better connect Lexington to other economic centers of North Carolina to further the economic development of the area,” Burr said. “I am grateful to Secretary Chao for recognizing the importance of this project, and I applaud the dedicated work our state and local officials put into bringing this highly competitive grant to the community.”
Lexington Mayor Newell Clark said the funding allotment serves as a game-changing moment in the community’s history.
“I am so proud of the collaborative and diligent efforts of our city, county, state, and federal officials to make this possible for the future of Lexington and the southern part of the Triad,” he said. “Especially the efforts of Sen. Burr, Sen. Tillis and Congressman Ted Budd. This has been an entire community effort from citizen volunteers, businesses owners, non-profits, government staff, officials, and countless others. Again, a tremendous thank you to our federal government’s willingness to invest in Lexington and our region’s future infrastructure needs.”