The U.S. Department of Transportation recently launched a voluntary initiative to transform highway and rail corridors into multi-use arteries for transmission wires, fiber optic lines, water pipelines and other vital utilities.
The America’s Great Corridors of Commerce (AGCC) will leverage public-private partnerships to rapidly build out critical infrastructure with no impact to the safety and no additional costs to the taxpayers.
AGCC will give state departments of transportation and railroads the ability to lease rights-of-way for land running alongside roads, tracks or shared space utility tunnels with revenue from utility leases being used to fund repairs and upgrades to bridges, railroads, roads and tunnels along the corridor. Rights-of-way owners can partner with the private sector to oversee design, development, operation and maintenance.
The initiative aims to accelerate new transmission projects so the United States can handle the growing energy needs of advanced manufacturing and AI technology, can discover opportunities to increase the deployment of fiber optic cables, and can address a multi-trillion backlog of upgrades for existing transportation infrastructure
The demand for fiber optics cables is expected to double by 2029
The Build America Bureau seeks public comment until Sept. 12 on the implementation of AGCC and will host an informational webinar on Sept. 1