The U.S. Department of Transportation will award more than $573 million through the Railroad Crossing Elimination Program.
The program, created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, provides funding to eliminate grade crossings, eliminate lengthy delays at railroad crossings, and improve safety. The Federal Railroad Administration will administer the grants.
In 2020, grade-crossing collisions were 39 percent lower than in 2000. There is more work to be done, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) contends, to ensure driver and pedestrian safety near the rail tracks.
“These funds are a vital, new tool that will save lives and reduce driver delays,” AAR President and CEO Ian Jefferies said. “States and other eligible entities are positioned to strategically deploy these dollars and maximize the program’s impact. These types of investments from the bipartisan infrastructure package are win-wins for everyone that enhance safety, reduce driver wait times and keep goods moving across the country.”
AAR focuses on the safety and productivity of the U.S. freight rail industry and is a railroad policy, research, standard setting, and technology organization. Founded in 1934, its members, affiliates and associates include Amtrak, the major freight railroads in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and non-Class I and commuter railroads.