On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced it had awarded more than $108 million to improve railroad safety in rural communities.
The funding, part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, would support nine projects in three states through the Special Transportation Circumstances (STC) Grant Program. The projects will primarily benefits short line railroads. The projects in Alaska, South Dakota and Wyoming will upgrade track, acquire new railcars, and improve or eliminate highway-rail grade crossings, officials said. Those efforts will increase the reliability and efficiency of rail operations, and strengthen local supply chains, officials said.
“No matter where you live in this country, rail systems play a critical role in getting people and goods where they need to go, and the STC grants ensure that no state is left behind when it comes to the development of a robust freight rail transportation system,” FRA Administrator Amit Bose said. “From funding upgrades to rail infrastructure resiliency and capacity to improving safety features at highway-rail grade crossings, these grants will strengthen American businesses and supply chains while making rail operations even safer.”
Among the projects are one in Alaska that would see rail yard improvements at the Alaska Railroad Corporation’s (ARRC) Seward and Fairbanks terminals to improve operations and accommodate future growth; one in South Dakota that would upgrade more than 16 miles of track and 34 structures on the Pierre & Eastern Railroad, Inc. (RCP&E) main line; and one in Wyoming that would close a potentially dangerous highway-rail crossing on College Drive/Wyoming State Highway 212 and replace it with a new overpass bridge.