Last week, the Biden administration announced that more than $368 million in grants from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will sponsor attempts to modernize rail infrastructure, improve supply chains, reduce congestion, and create jobs throughout rural and urban America.
In all, 47 projects in 32 states and the District of Columbia will benefit from these funds, thanks to the Biden administration-sponsored Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. That law nearly tripled funding for the rail infrastructure program to $1 billion a year over the next five years.
“Americans deserve a world-class rail system that allows people and goods to get where they need to go more quickly and affordably while reducing traffic and pollution on our roads,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said. “We’re proud to award these grants to improve passenger rail for riders and strengthen the freight rail that makes our supply chains and our economy work.”
By targeting both passenger and freight rail improvements, the FRA intends to bolster the productive capacity of the economy and the overall supply chain, rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure and its supplies in tandem as it moves toward recovery from the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. It also hopes the investments will spur economic and job growth while improving safety.
A minimum of 25 percent of funding through this program – the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) – must go toward rural projects. These awards nearly double that required investment while also awarding $87.6 million to develop new intercity passenger rail services and $25.7 million for capital projects or engineering solutions to trespassing.
Specific recipients in this round of awards include the massive, up to $57.9 million Raleigh to Richmond Corridor Infrastructure Engineering & Safety Program for surveys, preliminary engineering, and construction of a grade separation; $15.68 million Port of Baltimore Rail Capacity Modernization Project to construct four new working tracks and two crane rail beams; and the $6.19 million Heart of Georgia Americus Sub Upgrade Project to help the Heart of Georgia Railroad accommodate 286,000-pound loads and improve reliability, among other projects.
This year, the FRA received more than $1.1 billion in CRISI requests from states, local communities, and rail stakeholders, exceeding its available funding, even with the recent injections.